Graduating?
by Karneene
Summary: Tamaki realizes with help that Huny and Mori are graduating. Confessions soon follow and Haruhi is stuck in the middle of a love crisis. But when a new student comes to Ouran, will she make things eaiser or harder for Haruhi? TamaHaru
1. The Realization

"You do realize that school is ending soon," Kyouya remarked offhandedly. He and Tamaki were dressing in yet another of the Lord's ridiculous outfits. Haruhi and the twins were suspiciously late, and Mori-Senpai and Huny-Senpai had finished changing already. Tamaki looked up from the tie he was tying.

"And…?"

"We're going to college after next year, and Mori-Senpai and Huny-Senpai are leaving this year. By now I assumed you would have at least made some form of complaint that the twins will be the only ones left with Haruhi in a year." Kyouya looked up in time to see Tamaki's jaw hit the floor.

"Or not…" he muttered to himself. "If he didn't think about it… idiot amongst idiots…"

"WHAT?"

"Tamaki, don't tell me you didn't think about this. Haruhi isn't a junior, remember? She and the twins don't graduate next year." Kyouya looked at him in slight amazement. "I knew he was a baka, but I forgot he was this stupid." His mutters did not reach Tamaki's ears. He sighed and walked out the door, leaving the room to the shocked Tamaki.

* * *

Haruhi quickened her pace to get away from the twins. They were going on about their latest prank, and she wasn't in the mood for their chattering just then. They were already late and Senpai was bound to be annoyed.

Senpai… he had not called her his daughter in a long time. Ever since that incident with that Éclair girl… he had been acting odd. The hosts kept muttering about a confession and Huny-Senpai had asked almost every day "did he ask yet" until Mori-Senpai told him to stop interfering. Hikaru had been particularly moody, and Kaoru had been avoiding her almost, including her questions. Kyouya was the only one acting normal it seemed…if his usual dark nature was to be considered normal. And even he had given her a look now and then. She was getting tired of all the strangeness and she almost wished she were still in debt…if that was even what this was all about. But she had the feeling it was something else…

She sighed and opened the door to the third music room. Inside stood the hosts and their admirers dressed in some sort of coat and tie get-up, except far too elaborate for her to even begin to guess what the theme was that day. Kyouya looked up from his papers and raised an eyebrow.

"The twins insisted I wait while they tortured someone," she said apologetically. Kyouya glanced at them, and then shook his head.

"If you can get Tamaki out of there, go change," was all he said, obviously not interested as long as he got her business as soon as possible. Well, Kyouya-Senpai was Kyouya-Senpai. The other half of his sentence registered then.

"Senpai won't come out?" Kyouya shrugged, although she saw that glint of humor in his eye. So he'd done something to Senpai…probably something cruel…and he was in his little corner. She let out a sigh. She usually didn't bother with Tamaki's ridiculousness, but she needed to change. She realized she would have to go and do something. "Oi…I'll get him out."

"Tell him he has customers waiting," grumbled Kyouya. Haruhi rolled her eyes and walked into the smaller room where they all changed. Tamaki was sitting down on the floor, his tie undone and rolled in his hands. He looked up when she came in.

"Senpai, Kyouya-Senpai says to tell you that your customers are outside waiting."

"What does that matter…" he mumbled. Haruhi looked at him strangely. This was worse than his usual moodiness. "They're not you…"

"Senpai?" Haruhi asked. She wasn't quite sure what he meant. Or was he saying...

"Mori-Senpai…Huny-Senpai…you alone with those…!" He looked up, obviously distraught.

"Nani?"

"College…Haruhi, promise me…those two… in my absence! You must not forget…!" Haruhi looked at him. She had only caught half of his mumbled sentence.

"Who, Hikaru and Kaoru? But they're… oooh. That's what this is about…you're worried about me being late? Hikaru and Kaoru kept me after classes. Don't worry, I didn't forget about the host club. I'm just a little late." The Prince looked at her and then sunk lower onto the floor. "Oh, come on, I've been late before." She was getting annoyed, and she glared at him.

"_Mumble mumble…_"

"I can't understand you or help you when you're like this Senpai! Get up! Now what did Kyouya-Senpai do to you to make you like this?!" Haruhi cried, frustrated with his ridiculous self-pity. She was getting tired of this act.

"Haru-chan, Kyouya-senpai didn't do anything," announced Huny-Senpai from Mori-Senpai's shoulders.

"The Lord just realized that they're going to college," started Kaoru, pointing at Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai.

"And that you'll be alone with us…" continued Hikaru,

"For a whole year," they finished together. Tamaki rose up slowly, seemingly unnoticed by the twins, who were chattering away about what fun they would have while being all alone, but too bad they had to wait a year. That is, he was seemingly unnoticed until they were hurled against the wall by him.

"Stay away from my Haruhi!" he roared at them. They cringed, then looked towards Haruhi.

"It worked. The Lord is up," they proclaimed.

"Onegai, go satisfy those starry eyed girls outside," Haruhi pleaded, annoyed. She didn't like when the three of them bickered over her. Tamaki glanced up, now angry.

"Seeing as I am unwanted and unneeded, I think I will. It's nice to be appreciated by such beautiful young girls," he said loudly so everyone in the next room could hear him. A few girls swooned as he walked out and put his charming face on.

"Tamaki, let me fix your tie for you…" Haruhi heard as the door slammed closed. She went into the stall and closed the curtain, talking as she dressed.

"What's his problem?" she called to them. Mori-Senpai grunted uncomfortably, and there was silence. Finally, Huny-Senpai spoke.

"Well, he sees us as his family, and we're graduating this year. Also…Tama-chan likes you, but he's too stupid to know it, or say anything about it."

"Of course he likes me…but what's his problem?" she said, thinking. She couldn't remember when exactly she had known. She thought back to all the times that he'd been there for her. He'd saved her life twice, and she'd saved him too somehow. He didn't know what he did for people, and he didn't know when he couldn't handle it himself. He was used to being the hero, and wasn't suited to being saved, but yet when he was saved he still didn't know. He was oblivious to his own talents… and also oblivious to the fact that he couldn't do it all on his won.

She thought back to the first time she'd noticed this. It was back at the beach, when she'd confronted those two who were harassing those girls. She didn't remember what happened. All she remembered was falling, and she remembered as she hit the water she saw a figure outlined in the sky above her. And then she remembered waking up in his arms, and then he set her down and started yelling at her. And then he'd walked in on her and Kyouya-Senpai…talking… and then the storm had hit.

She had been afraid of storms ever since she could remember. And she had always dealt with it alone. She had been brought up to deal with everything alone, as she was forced to take care of her father and herself when she was very young, when her mother died. But he had opened that door and stood there with his hand out… and she'd jumped when the thunder hit...

It had felt good to be held, comforted. She'd never had someone to hold onto, a pillar of strength when she fell. She was usually that person for others, the calm one when everyone else lost their heads. But when she had fallen there was never anyone to catch her…until that day. And he had pretty much kept that promise that he had made. When he lost sight of who he was, the club was always there to help him. But that day she had saved him by reminding him of what he was to everyone. By letting him save her she reminded him that he was the pillar of strength, the one who had saved them all. And she was sure that something had changed in him that day. A small change, but a change nonetheless. She was beginning to try and put her finger on what exactly this change was when the twins sighed and broke her out of her reverie.

"This girl is," started Hikaru,

"Hopeless!" they said together.

"What he means is the Lord loves you," said Kaoru, "in a way that is beyond family love." Hikaru said nothing. She came out with the costume on, staring at the twins incredulously. Did they think she was Senpai?

"I wouldn't say love, but yes, I know…. but _why is he so upset_?"

"He doesn't know how to articulate what he feels," continued Kaoru, although both twins were looking slightly guilty and uncomfortable. Hikaru turned away. "You see… we were going to make it a contest-" He stopped short. Hikaru looked at him with wide eyes, and Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai were staring at him.

"We were going to bet to see when he confessed!" snapped Hikaru, glaring at Kaoru. He bit his lip and fell silent. Hikaru turned back to her. "But this wasn't ours to tell you, and I'm annoyed at you, Kaoru, for telling her."

"Gomen…" he muttered, but trailed off at the end. Hikaru continued to glare at him, and then he too stalked out and slammed the door…right in Kaoru's face. Haruhi watched in horror as Kaoru swung the door open and ran after him, knowing that this time it was not a fake fight, and that Hikaru was truly very angry with Kaoru for some reason. She knew it was not just because Kaoru had told Tamaki's secret as he would be mad at Huny-Senpai as well. It was something about the competition he was going to mention. Huny-Senpai's eyes widened as he looked at the closed door.

"They're fighting for real this time, aren't they?" Hikaru nodded slowly. "Haru-chan…It's all my fault, I shouldn't have said anything…I don't want them to fight. I don't want Tama-chan to be angry…" He paused and looked at her, a thought occurring.

"All four of them like you, you know that right?" Mori-Senpai cocked his head and looked at her too. Her brows furrowed as the realized what he had asked.

"Four…of them? But besides Senpai and as I had supposed, the twins, there's only…" Her jaw dropped. "KYOUYA?!!!!"

The door opened to admit the Shadow King. He looked in on the scene in front of him, then turned to Haruhi.

"What?" he asked calmly. She looked at him, shocked, and then realized she had said his name rather loudly. She looked at him, unable to close her mouth.

"…uh?" was all she could manage. Mori-Senpai looked up, and seeing that his two companions were unable to speak and that Kyouya was not leaving, he realized he had to say something. Haruhi was surprised when he thrust away his taciturnity and spoke.

"Mitsukuni was just suggesting that you shared…. Hikaru's feelings for her." Haruhi looked at him in shock, as she had not expected him to tell the truth either. Kyouya also turned to him. His face remained carefully composed, but then he let out a chuckle. His face was unreadable, and she could not tell if the laugh was fake or not.

"That's all? Haruhi, what do you think?"

"I think he's out of his mind…" she muttered tetchily, but Kyouya laughed again.

"Soka, can we please all go and do what we're here for? The three of them will be fine." Mori-Senpai nodded, then lifted Huny-Senpai and left the room.

"Sorry for the trouble…"

"There's nothing you can do about them graduating. They'll be missed, and we'll loose a bit of business, but, what can I do? As for the other issue…as long as you make a decision soon and don't let it hurt business…I don't care. But think over everything carefully please. Personally, I'm confident enough about who you'll pick that I'm willing to bet against you, even, as I'm sure you don't know what you're going to do yet. But I won't bother, as you don't have the money." Haruhi kept staring at him for a while, and then she too left the room, albeit almost in a daze. She did not see the shadow that passed over Kyouya's face as he watched her leave.


	2. The First Confession

"Tama-chan?"

"Yes, Huny-Senpai…" Tamaki turned around and looked at him. He was sitting in the window as he often did when thinking, somber, or both. He had gotten over it during the day, as was his nature, but Haruhi had seen a slight change in how he acted towards her after that. She had the feeling that he wanted to ask her out, as suggested by Huny-Senpai, but she knew better than to say anything now. Kyouya was right; she had no idea what she was going to do. She knew that whatever she did would cause pain for someone else. It was a situation that she was not pleased with.

"Are you going to miss us?" he asked with his eyes wide. Tamaki looked at him for while before nodding.

"School is ending in two weeks," remarked Kyouya. "I think a goodbye event would raise quite a bit of money. No objections I'm assuming?"

"Is anything with him _not_ about money?" muttered Haruhi to herself, but she didn't say anything that anyone could hear.

"Alright, now that that's settled, I'm leaving. Club _was_ finished ten minutes ago," he announced, and walked out the door. Haruhi stared at him as he left, and she noticed he glanced at her as the door closed behind him. Wether it was an invitation to say something to… _someone_… or just his usual evil way of making things worse than they were, she didn't know. All she knew is she felt the pressure, which she was sure was his intention. She turned to Tamaki, and saw him looking at her. He blushed and turned away, to stare out the window. Huny-Senpai was then lifted onto Mori-Senpai's shoulders and they too left.

Haruhi wondered what the club would be like without them. Huny-Senpai's cuteness was a major selling point and their whole older-brother, younger-brother act, and how Mori-Senpai took care of Huny-Senapi attracted a lot of customers. There were many girls that she could think of who might leave the club once they graduated. Or perhaps they would just have to work harder with more customers and less hosts. Kyouya might expect her to do something about it…maybe he'd take off some money from her debt….

"Oh…right…" she whispered. "I forgot."

"You forgot what?" asked Tamaki. He was staring at her. She looked around and realized the twins had left. She must have been daydreaming. She shrugged.

"I forgot I don't _have_ to work here anymore, that's all" Tamaki's eyes widened.

"You're quitting?" he asked, his voice climbing in pitch and volume. Haruhi shook her head before he could get hysterical. She had to say something… anything. Silence wouldn't work because then _he'd_ say something and she didn't want to have to say anything about _that_… not just yet.

"No, I was just thinking about my debt… and then I remembered I don't have any anymore…" she paused and looked out the window, nervous when she noticed a few clouds. She shook off the feeling, telling herself they were more white than grey. "I'm so used to owing you guys stuff I guess. Though technically I think that I still owe the club money what with everything you've done for me. First off there's the uniforms, and the rental fees for these outfits, and the twins lent me that phone, and I crashed that carriage on the bridge, and then there was that time when-" She was cut off by Tamaki's laughter.

"Senpai?" Haruhi asked, slightly bemused.

"Arigato, Haruhi," he said once he had calmed himself.

"For what?" she asked. He stood up, which made her slightly nervous. She had been standing close to the window, and she was now standing close to him. He looked down at her, the small smile that had been on his lips fading, the hand on his hip moving to her shoulder.

"For everything," he said. "You don't realize it, do you? You've also helped everyone, though not necessarily in material ways. The twins always thought that there would never be anyone who could understand them and their world enough to tell them apart. Yes, I pulled them from their world, but it was you who cut the last chains. You've figured out Kyouya's complex, and as disturbing of a character as he is and or wants to be, you don't care. You understood Mori-Senpai and Huny-Senpai when we didn't, and shed light on their world when none of us could quite figure it out. You've entered the lives of everyone in this club and set them right." He stopped and looked past her, at the door. "I've been told that I do the same thing, but even if I do, it was truly you that saved them from those last shadows. The small ones that tend to stain the heart." A memory lingered of him standing there, telling them that he would be leaving with Éclair. He saw himself, saw their faces once more.

"And maybe even me," he said, in a voice below a whisper so that the only one who heard it was himself. He sighed, and spoke for the first time of something that they had avoided talking about since it happened. "If I had gone back, would I have been happy?"

Haruhi's eyes widened and she looked to the side. He had avoided this subject. She didn't pursue it, afraid that he might regret what she did, the choice she had made him take. She knew that as soon as she fell off that bridge she had only left him with one choice. He kept his promises, and his promise made him follow her whether or not he really wished to. She had known, and she had wondered ever since then if she had done him a terrible disservice. He tilted her head to face him. She swallowed.

"I don't know," she said, almost a whisper. That little half smile that she had seen on the bank that day after they had fallen emerged. And a change came over him, and she knew he was going to say it now.

"I see. Do you remember what you asked me? About whether a single-minded love was like me?"

"Yes…"

"And what did I say?"

"Yes…"

"And who was the person I was referring to?"

"I assumed you were joking, what, with all your customers, your princesses," she lied. "And I don't know." A bit of embarrassment flashed across his face, mixed a bit with irritation. He had obviously been hoping he wouldn't have to say it out loud. But it was only for a moment, and it left her wondering if she had imagined it. Then a strange expression came over him, as if he had an epiphany.

"You don't? Then perhaps this'll help."


	3. Ostentatiousness and Observers

"Move over!" whispered Hikaru. Huny-Senpai didn't budge. The three of them were fighting through the crack in the door. Kyouya was surprised that they hadn't pused it open or been heard by now. He stood patiently watching through the crack where the hinges were, something that the rest of them hadn't thought of. Mori-Senpai was following his example on the other side, although Kyouya had the feeling that he was only watching to tell Huny-Senpai what had happened if he missed something. The twins and Huny-Senpai were fighting over the middle, hoping to each peek through the crack there. Kaoru was the most calm of the three, but Kyouya was quite sure that was because he knew what the result was going to be, and had decided, like Kyouya, that his feelings didn't matter and he was out of the running. He was slightly annoyed that he had been forced to lie outright about it to Haruhi, but Huny-Senpai was only doing what he thought was best under the circumstances. The hostility between the twins wasn't getting any better though, which was an annoyance. Their fights usually cost business, although they were only acting. This time it was a real fight, and he wasn't sure what the cost would be. He sighed as Tamaki leaned forward towards Haruhi.

"Took him long enough," he said resignedly, turning away from what was inevitably going to happen, startling everyone away before it happened. "Thankfully, it's Friday. We'll all have the weekend to get over it and we can come in on Monday accepting the fact that she's taken."

"We?" asked the twins, and then turned and glared at each other. "Please stop that. Ugh, never mind."

"I meant you, although I have much to do as well. I'm going to have to calculate the cost of _them_ leaving, _their_ new relationship, this **ridiculous** fight of yours, and see if we're making more or less money than we should when it all comes down to it." The twins took this answer as the truth and continued to glare through the doorjamb, but Mori-Senpai and Huny-Senpai gave him an odd look as he walked away. They looked at each other, shrugged, and turned back to the door.

* * *

Haruhi turned just in time, so that he missed her face entirely. He looked down, slightly embarrassed and looked away pretending it hadn't happened. 

"W-What was that?" asked Haruhi, blushing. "I thought he was gonna ask, not actually jump on me…" She whispered the last few words to herself, and was glad when he seemed not to hear them.

"You're still not following?!" cried Tamaki, finally losing it. "I th-"

"No, I just don't see why you had to go that far. You could have just said you liked me or something. And it's not like I didn't already know."

Tamaki's face went through a series of different emotions. The most prominent were irritation and embarrassment, and she watched as they fought to win him over. After much spluttering and rapid hand motions, he finally managed to get something out.

"So then why didn't you say something when I asked before?!"

"Well, I sorta didn't want to have to go through this… I was hoping you'd let it go. At least I'd have the weekend to think of something to say since I just found out today that this was the issue that was making you all act odd. This way is harder for me."

"Isn't that a little… selfish?"

"Not really. Did you plan on saying what you did?"

"…no…" He let her go and sat down on the sill with a thud. "So you don't know what you're going to do or if you're doing anything at all? Is that what you're saying?"

"Well, isn't it selfish of _you_ to jump on me? To assume that I'm going to have an answer when I **almost** just got my _first_ _kiss_? Well, from a boy." She asked pointedly, making him blush. "Besides, I thought that the first kiss was supposed to be mutual."

"So you don't like me…" He sank down into a heap of despair, sighing.

"That's not what I said," she said. She was obviously embarrassed as well, as the blush still lingered on her cheeks, but she was more level-headed than Tamaki. She sat down next to him and sighed too. "I guess… I don't know who I like. It depends on who likes me, and what's best for everyone I guess."

"Bu-!" She glared at Tamaki, making him sit back down with a thud. After calm,ing himself again, he spoke. "Must you always think about everyone before yourself?"

"Who said anything about not being selfish? Whomever I pick, doesn't matter who, it will cause pain. Yes, there's you. What about the twins?" she asked. "And Kyouya, if that wasn't a joke…" The last part was whispered to herself.

"Well…you and I both know how sheltered those two are. I suppose that _is_ something that requires thought…" He turned to her reluctantly, and she was very surprised he hadn't retreated into his little ball of despair. But then she saw the glint in his eyes and realized it was because he had hope. She decided this was a good time to leave, and stood up to walk towards the door. She jumped when his whisper sounded right next to her ear. "But I'm still in consideration too. And this contest is one that I will do my best not to lose."

"It's my chioce."

"Based on what?" he asked with a chuckle. She sighed, hating that he had brought his host attitude into this. She knew that if they were going to have a chance he would have to be himself.

"I'm not like other girls. Normal standards don't apply for me. You'll have to wait for a decision," she said, annoyed. He simply shrugged and watched her walk away, making one of his rare good decisions and deciding to not follow her.


	4. Yes Father?

Kyouya sat on his bed, toweling his wet hair. He had just taken a shower, and was sitting and contemplating the day's events. He put down the towel and replaced his glasses, thinking.

"…she's not even that beautiful. She's more…cute…than anything else. And she's so naïve… Maybe it's because she can see right through me? No. That's ridiculous. A female version of Tamaki would satisfy me then. Although, her intelligence is something to be admired, she isn't exactly cunning. And it's not as if father would even stand to hear about it. No, I need to consider other avenues through which I may bestow my affection upon a more suitable girl." He looked up as a knock sounded on the door.

"Mr. Ootori wants to see you in his office," said a voice from the other side of the door. Footsteps sounded down the hallway, and the servant was gone. Kyouya walked to the office with some bemusement. What could his father want now? Then again, why did his father do anything? It seemed that causing pain was his main goal. He wondered if his father even knew how a normal father was suppposed to act. Sighing, he knocked on the door hesitantly.

"I called for you. You don't need to knock." Kyouya adjusted his glasses and stepped into the room.

"Yes father?"

"Sit down. I have something to discuss with you." Kyouya sat. "How do you feel about that girl Fujioka Haruhi?" Kyouya started in shock, but quickly covered his surprise. What did he want with Haruhi?

* * *

"Yes father?" asked Tamaki, walking into his father's office. His father looked up from his papers, a serious look on his face. Tamaki swallowed in dread. It was probably about his mother again, with that face. He sighed in relief as his father loosened up a little and gestured to a chair.

"I know that you're friends with that Fujioka Haruhi girl," said his father, leaning over his desk to stare at his son. Tamaki jerked in surprise.

"So?" he asked hesitantly. Was this good or bad?

* * *

"Oh my god," Haruhi sighed, collapsing onto her bed. "What... a... freaking... mess." She lay down and stared at the ceiling, thinking of the days events.

"What the hell am I going to do? Well... I've already ruled out the twins. They're wonderful people, but I know that picking one would mean an emotional wreck of another would be on my hands. I can't handle separating those two. _They_ can't handle being separated. And I don't want to have anything to do with disrupting their precarious balance on the wall between their world and this one. If I pull one I might just push the other one back in. No, it's best for them to find their way on their own." She paused, glad that she had taken care of one problem. But there was a much larger one.

"Does he really like me? If he had nothing to hide wouldn't he have simply let himself go, instead of having that unreadable mask? No, that's not how he is… there's no way to tell. Agh, why does this have to be so complicated? Kyouya-Senpai _needs_ someone more than anyone else. The problem is, I'm not entirely sure that the person he needs is me. Even if he does like me. We're from different worlds, and his father… no. I'm not the right person for him. I need to tell him that. He needs someone who is his match, who can deal with his… evilness. What good is a wife that's afraid of you half the time? Then again, some people like that…. No. First, before I do anything, I need to find out if he really likes me. And that means waiting. If he's going to say anything, he won't do it while everyone is around. And if I say no he might pawn it off as a joke. Or he might even make a joke anyway even if he doesn't. Is he that evil? No, he's actually really nice, although I forget sometimes. But he puts up a front, and so he might….Alright. The best thing to do is wait and see what he does." She paused again. She felt like it was cruel to leave them all hanging like that. "But I have to tell the twins, alone, so that they can make up. And I have to make them swear not to say anything." She sat up and began to fix something to eat. She brightened as a thought came to her.

"I could let it slip that Huny-Senpai said that Kyouya-Senpai liked me. Their curiosity would make them volunteer to figure it out for me, this way they have an excuse. They'll all find out if he really likes me anyway. And if he doesn't, then it'll be considered a joke and there's no worries…right?"

**(A/N: Gasp, what's going to happen?lol. Sry it's so short. I was on vacation, so the 3****rd**** chapter took a while 2. Thnx so much for the reviews ppl. And I'm sry about the cliff-hangers, but I love them, so u'll jus hav 2 wait. ;-) I'll try 2 update as much as I can, now that school's pretty much done. Although I think that I've been doing ok. Keep up with the reviews pls!**

**P.S. See last ep. of anime for what their dad's r gonna say if u don't know.)**


	5. Planning and Plotting

"She's a good student…" Kyouya trailed off and hesitantly waited for a response from his father, which he got. Although, a smirk was not exactly what he had been expecting.

"And could you consider her a candidate as a wife?"

Kyouya began to yell 'what?!' but then artfully turned it into a cough. His ather didn't seem to be fazed by his obvious outburst. He simply kept on smirking and staring at his son, while handing him a tissue. Kyouya used it to cover his mouth, and then wipe it although they both knew he didn't need it. Kyouya was surprised that his father was kind enough to give him those few seconds, as he had wanted. He was buying time so he could think of what to say. Who had told him? Why wasn't he furious, lecturing him about how commoners are not suitable matches for sons of the Ootori family? He finally decided to meet it head on, and looked up defiantly.

"Perhaps. May I ask why you wish to know?"

"I was thinking that perhaps she would be a suitable match for you in the future. You're not currently in any relationship that I know of, and as I understand it you spend quite a bit of time with her in that ludicrous club that you insist on retaining despite my protests against the stain it puts on the Ootori family name. Or perhaps… this girl is the reason you maintain the club?" Kyouya held back a response, instead faking coughing again. It was the only thing he could think of doing. His father was obviously toying with him. Although, how much he couldn't tell. Obviously the last sentence, but what about the offer? Unfortunately, this time his father did not go along with his façade of sickness.

"Are you sick? Do you need to see someone? It doesn't look good if the son of a medical company is sick, much less our company."

"No, I'm fine. I… a….if you wish me to wed this girl then perhaps I can see if I can win her affections," he said finally. If his father was serious, then this was the perfect excuse. He waited for his father's response.

"It shouldn't be too hard. Isn't that what you… hosts…do?"

"I'll do my best father," said Kyouya with a suppressed sigh, walking out of the room.

* * *

"So I was wondering how you would feel about marrying her." Tamaki looked at his father in disbelief. Could he really be hearing this? He must be dreaming. 

"That would be… wonderful!" Tamaki cried happily, jumping up. His father gave him a stern look and gestured to the chair again. Tamaki calmed himself with much effort and sat down again.

"I was thinking that she would a suitable bride. If your idiocy doesn't scare her away, that is. Is this girl interested in you?"

"Y-" He stopped, remembering his conversation with Haruhi. "I think so."

"Well, I'm sure you can build on whatever relationship you have. After all, isn't that what that club of yours does?"

"Yes father," said Tamaki, walking out of his father's office. His mind spun as he walked through the house to his bedroom. "Did that really just happen? Did he really just ask me to court Haruhi? Oh, mommy will be so happy for me! Should I call him?" He opened his door, then saw something in the sky. A flash. His heart skipped a beat. Haruhi was home alone. Her father was out of town for the week, and she would be in the house by herself in the storm…

"This is perfect!" He cried, surprisingly realizing something useful for himself for once. "I can go over there and comfort her. Perhaps she's made up her mind already."

He happily pulled on a jacket over his buttoned t-shirt and pulled on some sneakers, tripping over his jeans in his haste. He quickly got someone to drive him over. But something that he hadn't expected happened. When he got to her house, she already had company. He sat in the limo and waited for her guests to leave.

* * *

"So you don't like us, but you want us to figure out if the Shadow-King likes you?" asked the twins. They had made up and were sitting on either side of her. The curtains were drawn, and they had music on. They also spoke loudly. She could barely tell that there was s storm outside, and was glad for the company… even if it was the two annoying twins. She nodded, and then jumped when an especially loud crack of thunder sounded. The twins looked at each other, contemplating what to do. 

_Well, it's a good excuse to get some dirt on the Shadow Lord for a change. _said Kaoru. Their twin bond was stronger than anyone knew, and they were able to convey thoughts sometimes. After getting over their fight, they were relishing in doing it again. They hated fighting.

_True. And we haven't had fun in a while. With all the fighting._

_I hate fighting with you._

_And I hate being angry with you._

Haruhi watched, completely dumbfounded, and the twins jumped up and swooped at each other in a move that would have made all of their fans from the club faint. Wondering what the hell happened, she huddled closer under the blanket that they had placed around her shoulders and watched them talk nonsensical words, basically meaning 'I love you, I'm so sorry' over and over again. She looked at them and realized that she had made the right decision by not choosing either of them. They loved each other too much. How much they loved each other, and how, she wasn't sure. Although they didn't always keep the displays of homo love inside the club, she wasn't sure if that too was an act or not. She shook the thoughts out of her head, not wanting to think about what type of relationship they were in. They turned around, arms around each other's waists, hands on hips. Their tradtitional pose of mischief.

"We'll do it!" they said, grinning mischievously. Haruhi sighed and shook her head, but her pose of disdain was ruined when she shrieked in fear at another crack of thunder. The twins sighed, pulled out an MP3, and put the headphones in her ears. They then looked at each other, and with a smirk, sat on either side of her and pulled her into a giant hug. After a few minutes of struggling, she sighed and decided that they weren't going to let go. She gave up and listened to the music, trying to block out the sounds of the storm.

_Just 'cause she doesn't like us, _began Kaoru

_Doesn't mean we can't have fun!_ finished Hikaru. The two chuckled inwardly and sat back with smirks.


	6. Those Twins

"Look, I don't care if the storm isn't over. And I don't care if tomorrow is Saturday. You people _are not_, and I really mean it, _**you are not sleeping over**_! Get out of my freaking house!"

The twins had stayed with her, talking and planning on how to spy on Kyouya. But it was 11 o' clock and Haruhi knew that if they didn't leave soon she would fall asleep while they were there. And she didn't trust them. Frankly she wasn't sure if she trusted anyone besides Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai to be alone with her for too long. Although… Tamaki was too much of an idiot to really try anything too bad, and also too much of an idiot to not be scared into not doing anything too bad by a glare. Kyouya had already displayed that he would go to the edge if only to teach a lesson to her. She wasn't sure she wanted to know what he was like when he liked her. Or perhaps he had liked her then and had used that as an excuse…

She didn't want to think about that. Just then she just wanted the twins to…

"Get out of my house!"

"Alright, alright, calm down! We're leaving! Keep the MP3 for now," they responded, grabbing their jackets and umbrellas. "See you later."

She let out a sigh of relief as the door closed behind them. Those twins were too tricky. Mischievous twins in her house were the last thing she needed during a storm.

"Even if he does like me…" she mused, "what'll I do?" Her question did not need an answer. She knew who she loved already, even if she wouldn't admit it. She'd made it clear to herself and everyone else when she'd chased after that baka. They'd been so close to losing him… the MP3 fell silent as the music ended, and a new song began.

_You never know what ya got 'till it's gone…_

She laughed to herself. Perfect timing. But it was so true. She had realized that she did care for Tamaki, and that he was a good friend, but she hadn't really thought about it that much beyond that. Of course, as the twins had artlessly pointed out, she was much like him because she was a little bit clueless when it came to things about her. Then he'd gone and gotten into a mess with that Éclair girl and of course, nothing was simple when it was family matters. No, they had to bring in the issue of his mother. And after they fell off of the bridge together, and he'd clutched her to him… well, she had originally thought that the feelings went without saying. She then thought about everyone else. It was obvious that the twins had liked her, and she had wondered how everything would affect everything else. But Kyouya needed someone too. And she wasn't just saying it to convince herself, but Kyouya needed someone with a little more spunk. Someone who had a temper, yet a coolness to match. But where would they find a girl like that? **(A/N: Hint, hint.)**

* * *

Tamaki stared in horror as the twins exited her apartment, pushing each other jokingly and laughing. 

"What in god's name...? How dare they?! And she let them into her…oh. I see. They won…they won the contest. And her love." His driver turned and looked at him.

"If I may be so bold sir, why don't you go in there yourself? A proper man should stand up for what he wants, right?" Tamaki looked at his driver in surprise. He wasn't the usual driver.

"You're new, correct?"

"I'm sorry sir," said the young man, mistaking his question for annoyance. Tamaki chuckled, realizing how he sounded.

"I'm turning into Kyouya," he mused to himself. "Obviously, you are. No, I think…I think I agree with you. I'll be back. Go home, I'll call a cab. It's already late."

"I can't d-"

"Yes you can. Have a good night," Tamaki said, leaving no room for argument as he stepped out of the car. He sighed and tried to keep his anger in check as he walked up the stairs. Hesitantly, he knocked.

"I told you to go-" Haruhi's snarl stopped dead in its tracks as she looked at Tamaki. "…home."

"So you weren't doing indecent things with those unsavory twins?" he asked. Haruhi couldn't mask a smile at the tone of desperate hope in his voice. She shook her head.

"Come in out of the rain," she said with a sigh. Tamaki put on an expression of a dog being given a treat and stepped into the house. He shed his jacket and took off his shoes, then stood there. He met her questioning gaze and shrugged.

"I don't want to get your floor all wet. I'm soaked," he explained. The smile that had formed before was still on her face as she fetched a towel and handed it to him. "Although handsome men can't be hurt by water." She smiled at the inside joke. A crack of thunder made her jump then, and she turned on the MP3 again. He looked at it suspiciously. She shrugged.

"Hikaru and Kaoru told me to keep it. They were just here to talk about something."

"Talk about what?" he asked, obviously worried. Her smile widened at his pathetic tone.

"Nothing you would have to worry about. Discussing a person, that's all."

"Oh, I see. They're good for revenge I suppose," he said, obviously taking the twins' mischievous nature seriously. Haruhi was about to correct him, then decided that him thinking that she had employed them to play a prank on someone was better than the truth.

"So why are you here? I thought I made it clear that…"

"That what? All you said was it was your choice," he pointed out in that way he had sometimes. He pointed out things that some didn't see or think about in a blunt way, not realizing he saw what others did not. Haruhi pursed her lips, thinking. She'd told herself to not do anything until they figured out what Kyouya felt. But did it really matter if she was going to turn him down? Unless…

Would he do it? He was horrible at keeping secrets, and not very good at keeping promises when it was something he felt strongly about. Unless she threatened that she would never forgive him… that might shut him up. Perhaps… but it looked like she didn't have a choice. She was going to have to risk it.

"Senpai, can I trust you to keep your mouth shut?"

**(A/N: **_**Is she going to tell him? Or if not, what is she going to do?!! **_**Sorry to all Kyouya fans reading this chapter! I am a fan of him too, but I always thought he needed someone who had more...fire? Idk if that's the right word, but... bear with me. There's more of him to come, I _promise_. As I hinted before… And sorry it's a bit short. Keep reading please!)**


	7. Decisions and Unwelcome Guests

"Well, if it's something really bad… like it's against the law I'm obliged as a law-abiding citizen to make sure that you-"

"It's not. If I told you my decision would you shut up about it and not try and change my mind?" she asked. She watched him sweat for a little bit, then sighed in relief as he nodded resignedly.

"Well…" she said, letting she sentence hang. She tried to hold in her laughter as the Host King practically fell on his knees and begged. He gave her those puppy eyes, and finally she gave in to her laughter. "Who do you think it is, you baka?"

"Well, from that laugh, me… but that doesn't make me an idiot! You only ever said that you didn't know!"

"I went on a mad-dash after you in _a horse drawn carriage_! And fell off of a bridge because of you! And then I danced with you and pretty much no one else after that… even after your idiocy! Everyone else pretty much knew that it'd be you, which is why their efforts were only half-hearted, and which is probably why the twins actually agreed to leave my house!" she cried, laughing at his dumbfounded expression. He sprang up and pulled her into an embrace, twirling her around in circles. She rolled her eyes but put up with it for a few moments before struggling out of his grasp. She proceeded to attempt to pour herself some water, but almost dropped the bottle when a crack of thunder sounded. Tamaki gently took the container from her hands and set it down, then turned her to face him. He took in her shaking hands, her wide eyes, her trembling lip, and sighed, putting her on the sofa and taking the MP3 to turn up the volume. He smiled as he saw the song title.

"How fitting…" he said with a smile. He pulled a blanket from somewhere and tossed it over her, then sat down next to her putting an arm around her shoulders. She tried to protest but he cut her off. "I'm not those twins. I'm not going to do anything but sit here until the storm is over or at least until you stop shaking."

Haruhi looked up at him with a small smile. It was always good to have someone to lean on. And his promise was true as ever. He looked down at her too, and a wry smile appeared on his lips.

"You know, you don't always have to be so strong." Haruhi declined the chance to comment, and instead rested her head on his shoulder, listening to the song.

* * *

The twins smirked as they got ready for bed, thinking of Tamaki walking into Haruhi's house. It was obvious that they would end up together. But they understood her need to know if the Shadow King liked her as well. She didn't want feelings to be hurt. That was why she hadn't picked them, they knew. She didn't want to hurt one of them by picking the other. They didn't mind, as they had each other. Kaoru watched as Hikaru turned off the light, then settled under the sheets with him. 

"So what's the plan?" asked Hikaru. Kaoru pursed his lips as he stared at the ceiling.

"Spying, obviously. Watching is the best thing to do," Kaoru responded. They both smirked.

"Maybe we can get some other dirt on him even if he doesn't like our toy," they said in unison. "That way he won't be so…" Hikaru looked at Kaoru, the two looking for word. Then, something hit them.

"What if he finds out before we catch him doing anything?" Kaoru asked the question they were both thinking. Hikaru swallowed.

"I'm not sure I want to know. But we've got to try and figure something out. We promised her."

"We'll figure it out." They said together. They grasped hands under the sheets, as if sealing their promise.

* * *

Haruhi woke groggily, entangled in headphones and… arms? She froze in fear, not remembering anything, then sighed in relief as it all came back to her. She looked at Tamaki, and gently removed his arm from her shoulders. She didn't want to wake him up just yet. Had she really fallen asleep on him like that? How… she wasn't quite sure. Although, she admitted to herself, it wasn't all that bad being with him… She shook her head out of that thought. She was daydreaming over that idiot? Impossible. 

She shook her head to clear her thoughts and set to making some breakfast. Although, the food wouldn't be quite to his taste… but he'd have to deal with it. And she knew he was too nice and caught up in 'commoner ways' to complain. He'd be too involved in eating it. She smiled at the sigh of him sleeping there. He might be an idiot, but just sitting there with his eyes closed he was a vision. For a brief moment she understood why all those girls fainted over him. He _did_ have the face of an angel.

He just had the intelligence of a lower life form.

She smirked at her little joke and then jumped as a knock sounded at her door. Who could that be? Her heart skipped a beat. What if it was her father… she took a look and her heart nearly stopped in fear.

"One second Kyouya!" she called. She didn't want to wake the idiot… unless… she looked around frantically, then pulled a mat from across the room and put it next to him. With effort, she managed to get him onto it, but then froze when he sat up and yawned, his eyes still closed.

"Wh-whe-five more minutes…" he fell back onto the mat. She sighed in relief and then began the grueling proess of drgging him into the bedroom. This took longer than she expected, and Kyouya rang the doorbell a few times for emphasis. She quickly wet her hair in the sink and arrived at the door flushed and wet.

"Sorry. I…uh…just got out of the shower," she said nervously. That would explain her disheveled appearance, and she would be out of breath from changing so fast.

"It's alright. I suppose I'm the one barging in, so I shouldn't have expected you to be ready to receive visitors. Although, you look troubled. Are you alright?"

_No I'm freaking nervous and out of my mind with fear that _you're_ going to figure out _Senpai_ spent the night or _he's_ going to wake up and find out _you're_ here!_ she thought, but obviously didn't say that aloud. "I'm fine. Come in, sit down Kyouya-Senpai. Would you like some tea?"

**(A/N: Sry it's a little short but that was the best way to end it without it getting too long. What do you think will happen? I love cliff hangers! ;-) Reviews are welcomed-and asked for-and thanks for the ones I've gotten!)**


	8. Videotaped Confessions

"No thank you. I'm not very hungry."

"Isn't this a bit earlier than your usual waking time?" she asked innocently. He smirked at the remark, as they both knew perfectly well that he hated waking up.

"The low-blood-pressure demon king went to sleep early last night," he lied. He wouldn't tell her that he'd been up late thinking about his father… and her. "Why, don't you enjoy my company?"

"Well, I was just wondering why you're here alone, and so early…" she let the sentence hang. He smirked again, and adjusted his glasses.

"It has been brought to my attention that my father wishes for me to marry you," he responded, flat out. He watched her jaw drop.

"W-wh-how-what?" she said loudly, then chided herself, glancing at the bedroom door. Kyouya didn't notice, thankfully. She finally managed to articulate a sentence. "And how do _you_ feel about me?" She asked, sounding far more confident than she sounded. He raised an eyebrow at her boldness, then shrugged.

"I'm gladly surprised," he said tactfully while pushing up his glasses with his index finger, saying everything and nothing at the same time. She swallowed.

"And what would your father do if I refused to marry you?" she asked. He looked up, his face suddenly different. It was… sincere, almost. She had never been able to read his face before, but it was almost pleading for a moment. But it was only for a millisecond, and then his face was an unreadable mask again.

"I don't know what he would do," he said truthfully. Haruhi suppressed a sigh. Of course, everything had to be complicated. And as usual, the pressure was on her. There was then a stirring sound from the bedroom. She closed her eyes, and began to wish the earth would open up and swallow her.

* * *

"Oh my god, he's going to Haruhi's house!" cried the twins in disbelief.

"The Demon King's actually gonna confess!" said Hikaru in awe. Kaoru was silent, and he turned to his twin to see a mischievous smile growing on his twin's face. "What is Kaoru?"

"Milord. He's probably still in the apartment." The two looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Keep the engine running! We're going to do some filming!" cried the twins, grabbing the video camera they had brought and sprinting up the sidewalk as soon as Kyouya entered the house.

* * *

"Did you hear that?" asked Kyouya, looking up. He hadn't noticed Haruhi's reaction. She thought of something quickly.

"It's probably just the alarm to wake me up in the morning. I woke up earlier than I had planned to today. I'll go and turn it off. And I'm going to freshen up a little if you don't mind. I'm a little disheveled from that mad dash you put me in. Excuse me," she got up and forced herself to walk sedately to the room door, opening it just enough to get in, but not wide enough that he could see the Host King. She collapsed against the door on the other side. A groggy Tamaki looked at her.

"What is it?" he asked. He then heard noise coming from outside the room "There's someone outside, isn't there? Oh my god, it's your father isn't it?" Haruhi opened her eyes, and then decided that this would work fine. She nodded, only half-faking fear.

"I dragged you in here. He's here only for a little while, then he's going back. He left something important here, but he might come in here to look for it. He left his keys at home, so I wet my hair and told him I had just taken a shower and that was why it took so long. But you have to hide! He heard you, but I told him it was the alarm clock" She grabbed a brush and fixed her hair. "I told him I'd freshen up a little because I was so rushed. But get in that armoire, quick!"

In fear, Tamaki did as she asked, squeezing in behind her clothes. Her heart was beating twice as fast as it should be, but she was glad that fear made him believe her story. Or it could be his usual idiocy…She shook her head and with a deep breath, opened the door wide to show Kyouya there was no one inside as she left. She closed the door behind her. The Shadow King was sitting on the sofa as if nothing had happened, flipping through a magazine that happened to be lying on the table. He looked up as she sat down next to him. Thankfully, he also seemed not to notice her heart practically bursting out of her chest.

"It's now or never…" she whispered to herself. She turned to face him. "Kyouya-Senpai… You're a… unique person. You act cold and unforgiving and harsh, and yet you're kind. I know that you have a soft spot on the inside, despite the fact that you wouldn't show it for the world. You're a good guy, and I'm sure you'd make any girl happy… but I don't think I should be that girl." She watched his face as expressions of amusement and disappointment flashed across, along with other emotions that were harder to catch. His face was carefully schooled, but she could notice subtle things. Whether he did this on purpose or he was under duress, she didn't know.

"Listen to me for a second. Even if your father likes me, I'm not really… comfortable with him. Or you, frankly, for that matter. I mean, ok, this isn't coming out like I want it to…" He raised an eyebrow but remained silent. "Alright, you deserve a girl that… isn't… afraid of you?" His face changed to shock. Then, he began to laugh. She hadn't really ever seen him laugh outright before, and she was surprised for a while. After a bit, she smiled, realizing how she must sound to him. She continued hesitantly, and his face turned back to its usual mask.

"What I mean is someone who can match your… attitude I guess. I mean…do you know what I mean?" He smirked and pushed up his glasses, then dipped his head slightly. "It's going to be hard to find someone like that, but I'm sure that there's someone out there…"

"Are you always this articulate?" he asked finally, deciding to end her discomfort. She let out a sigh that was more of a growl, annoyed. He was making fun of her when she was trying to be kind. "And, _frankly_, as you said, I expected you to say something to the extent of what you just did. It's obvious to me and everyone else that you're in love with that blond idiot. Whether you mean what you just said or are just trying to get rid of me, I don't really care. I'm quite aware that I'm not exactly nurturing and caring. And I suppose what you're saying has some weight." He stood and she looked up at him, her eyes wide and accusing.

"So you just came here for the sake of telling your father you came?"

"Well, that and the fact that it was amusing to watch you flounder in the water," he replied. He opened the door, then paused. "And by the way, tell Tamaki his limo is in plain view. He can come out of wherever you hid him." He smirked and left the apartment with a stuttering Haruhi in it.


	9. A New Face

Haruhi was almost at her wits end. The twins were as usual, bothering her. Under normal circumstances, she would be able to handle their antics. Under her current state of duress however, she was in no mood to stand for their idiocy. What was worse, they were bothering her _about_ her situation. Of course they had seen Tamaki go into the apartment. They were also going on about something like a video. She wasn't quite sure she wanted to know what they had taped. Tamaki was bound to get involved or do something stupid if they did anything with those tapes. And if Kyouya found out about what she had asked them to do… she wasn't quite sure she wanted to think about it. She had hoped after she made a vague decision everything would be a little bit simpler. Of course, with the host club, nothing was simple.

She looked up with a sigh when the door opened. She had tuned out the twins a while ago, and she was expecting the teacher. She had hoped her salvation was entering, as the teacher could handle the twins relatively well. Instead, a girl walked in. She wasn't like any of the normal girls that went to Ouran. She was wearing black leather boots up to her knees, with four buckles going around them. The purpose of them, Haruhi couldn't say. Above that were very used-looking jeans, with a chain hanging from the left side. A black tank-top hugged a slim form, with just enough curves to make the twins stop dead in their tracks and babbling to stare at her, along with everyone else in the class, the girls mainly for her eccentricism. She wore a spike-band on her left wrist, and her nails were painted black. Her almond-shaped cat eyes were accentuated by eyeliner, but she didn't need it with her long eyelashes. Strangely, this beautiful feature was covered by sunglasses that barely gave a glimpse of them. Haruhi wondered why she was wearing them indoors, then shrugged the question off for later. Her other wrist held a black bangle, and her long, wavy, raven-black hair hung around her shoulders. It nearly covered her neck, but Haruhi could see a strange, belt-like thing being used as a necklace, the buckle in front like a pendant. She was obviously not Oriental Asian, or Caucasian, as her glowing copper skin was from a different ethnicity than Haruhi could recognize. Indian? Perhaps, but it was more likely that she was mixed. With what, Haruhi could not say. One thing was certain; she was gorgeous, and was soon going to be very popular… with the guys.

"Which one of you is Fujioka Haruhi?" she asked, tilting her head to give her best arrogant look. It was a look that screamed troublemaker. Haruhi stood up from between the twins, curious.

"That'd be me. You're the new student who won the scholarship, right?"

"Yeah. You're supposed to show me around or whatever," she said with a shrug. It was an indifference that she always carried. Everyone that knew the girl said it was a "coolness" that fit a boy better. The girl didn't really care; it was just her personality.

"Well, our first class is English. And your name is?"

"Caitlyn Kumar. American transfer student." She fixed her glasses by taking her index finger and her thumb and grabbing the edges of the lens, setting them firmly on her nose.

"You can call me Haruhi."

Caitlyn noticed the students around her were all staring at her, although the guys in a different way. Haruhi would have been at least a bit perturbed, but this girl wasn't. She rolled her eyes and was about to take a seat when the twins sidled up next to her. They both had mischievous grins, the perfect looks of troublemakers. Little did the twins know…she was a rebel, and no one did troublemaker better than her. She raised an eyebrow and looked at the two boys who were standing on either side of her. They slid their arms over her shoulders.

"So, what exactly are you?" they asked in unison.

"Oh, very cute. That twin act is a little cliché though. And it's called being an individual. More specifically, in America, we call it Punk."

"Cliché?" asked the twins in disbelief. Their arms fell from her shoulders before she could forcefully remove them. Haruhi suppressed a laugh. She was beginning to like this girl. The twins, on the other hand, sulkily slipped into their seats.

Caitlyn somehow made it through the day, following Haruhi around. Haruhi remembered that she had gotten lost and been late to a few classes on her first day, and was glad that she was there to help Caitlyn. It was amusing to watch her and the twins bicker. She figured it was time for a taste of their own medicine, even if the only flavor Caitlyn had was 'sarcastic'.

Caitlyn, on the other hand, was thinking about Haruhi. For some reason, no one else was able to see that she was a girl. Everyone referred to her as 'he' and went on about some Host Club. The school was so large, and everything was so new to her…even the language. She really wanted to get home and take it all in, but she also wanted to see why this girl was treated as a guy…and why she didn't mind it. So when Haruhi and the twins set off for the club, she decided she would tag along.

"You don't mind if I come, do you?" she asked. The twins, who seemed to have taken a fancy to her, grinned.

"Not at all," they said in unison, linking arms over her shoulders. She pursed her lips slightly and looked at each of them from the corners of her eyes. It was one of her famous glares, and the twins' smiles faltered. She calmly took her long black nails and pinched each of heir hands, lifting them off of her shoulders. She then released the whimpering boys. Haruhi's eyes met hers.

"I think that we're going to get along well," she said for the third time that day. Caitlyn smirked. She thought so too.

"I think I could learn to like it here," she said. Haruhi stopped at the large wooden door. She turned to Caitlyn.

"I must warn you that this place is full of idiots. And we're also sort of in the middle of a…family crisis. We consider ourselves a family at least. And some of us are graduating. It's sort of emotional and…crazy in here," she said. She looked at the twins pointedly. "Also, you've seen how these two are with each other. The whole twincest thing?"

"Yeah…" Caitlyn said warily.

"The girls love it, for some reason. It's a million times worse in here."

"Not a problem. New York's a very diverse place. I don't have a problem with it."

Haruhi nodded, slightly relieved. She also catalogued the previous statement in her mind. New York…the big business and tourist capital. So that was where she was from. Her thoughts occupied her, giving her a bored look as she opened the door. Caitlyn, on the other hand, was a bit excited. She wanted to meet the one the twins called Lord, and the so-called Demon-King.

"Haruhi must me exaggerating. They couldn't be that odd. I'm _sure_ that it can't be _bad_ in there…or at least _that_ bad… Can it?" she said to herself.

**(A/N: Sry it's short, but I figured a new character needs a little bit of time, so u can get used to her. I hinted a lot tho, so I guess it wasn't that much of a surprise. I hope u like her, and I think she'll sufficiently shake up the host club… and Ouran! Review pls, and tell me what u think of Caitlyn!)**


	10. Black Roses

"His eyes, they're violet."

"The color of the passion that burns in my heart for you," said the Host King to the stuttering girl. She had been talking to her friends, not Tamaki. She was obviously a new member of the hosts' fans. Kyouya rolled his eyes and turned back to his computer. Those three were late, as usual. He looked up as the door opened. In walked Haruhi, Kaoru, Hikaru, and… a girl. When she walked in, black roses swirled around the room, and her dark yet beautiful appearance was noted by everyone… except for the oblivious Host King, who did not look up. Kyouya's eyebrows snapped together. He hadn't heard anything about this new girl. Why not? It was obvious she was new. She was dressed differently than everyone else. And she had a strange accent too. She was talking to Haruhi about New York. New York… he began typing furiously on his computer.

"Ahh… Caitlyn Kumar. Transfer student from America. Went to school at Stuyvesant… skipped grades… brought back down for Ouran. Full papers haven't arrived yet. Hmm, looks like I'll have to wait to find out about her." He examined her large brown cat eyes barely visible under her sunglasses, her wavy midnight hair, her golden brown skin, and her calm and reserved manner as Huny-Senpai ran up to her and announced that she was pretty, offering her cake, with Mori-Senpai not far behind. Kyouya closed his laptop and put on his best host smile, walking over to the four. Mori-Senpai moved over to make room for Kyouya in the circle. He bent low and took her hand, meaning to kiss it, but she calmly retracted it before he could do so. He noticed the silver band on her finger, with engravings in it. The metal was darkly colored where the engravings were, making it look old. Her other hand had a similar one, although the diamond shaped pattern was slightly different. He raised an eyebrow, and as with everything, masked his surprise and stood up straight. He opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off.

"What are you, Casanova?"

"…Caitlyn, I assume?"

"And a stalker too. Demon-King, _I presume_?" Kyouya indulged himself, and let out his surprised laugh.

"Touche..." He turned to Haruhi. "I see you've brought some New York attitude into our midst," he said. Haruhi shrugged.

"I was supposed to show her around the school. She wanted to see who you guys were since, as usual, people were talking about us," she said, obviously bored of everyone's fascination with the Host Club.

"I-" Kyouya began, but was cut off by Tamaki, who swooped in upon seeing the drop-dead-gorgeous girl. He knelt before her, taking a dramatic pose with his hand to his heart, the other reached out towards her.

"What have I done to be graced by your dark beauty? You are like a-"

"And this is the Host King," she said dryly, turning to Haruhi. "You're right; he's an idiot." Tamaki froze and retreated to his corner, sulking. The twins laughed.

"Good job, Caitlyn!" they cried together, giving her a thumbs up. She simply raised her eyebrow, then fixed her sunglasses in her usual fashion of grabbing the edges of the lens and fixing it on her nose. Haruhi rolled her eyes, and decided to go around the circle announcing names.

"This is Mori-Senpai, Huny-Senpai, Kyouya-Senpai, and Tamaki-Senpai over there in the corner," she said, pointing to each host as she said their names. "This is the Ouran High School Host Club."

"Well, I think that I'm going to stay a little while. Watch you all in action."

"Feel free to stay as long as you like," said Kyouya, unfazed by her cold demeanor.

"Thank you. I will," she responded. All the hosts looked at her, and how she looked defiantly at their Shadow-King with one eyebrow raised.

"She's gonna give him a run for his money…" stated Kaoru so that only the Hosts, but not Kyouya, could hear.

"And that's scary," replied Hikaru. They looked at her and shuddered.

"I like her already," announced Haruhi. "And besides, Kyouya-Senpai might have just met his match… in more ways than one."

* * *

"See ya Haruhi. Thanks for taking me around today." 

"Not a problem. I'll see you tomorrow," replied Haruhi, waving to Caitlyn. She watched as the girl shut the door to the third music room.

"Well…" started Hikaru.

"She's cute…"said Kaoru.

"So let's have a contest!" they finished together. Tamaki looked up from the coffee he was finishing. Haruhi felt a twinge of something she couldn't name in her chest.

"No," said Tamaki. The twinge disappeared. "I think it's cruel to make a sport of someone's heart. And so what if she's cute? We have many rare and delicate flowers wandering through our gardens. There are many cute girls here."

"Alright. She's gorgeous."

"And she's not delicate," finished Kaoru.

"Our new toy!" they cried happily.

"Pft. I think she was the one toying with you two. She's not your type," Haruhi replied. The twins looked up from their devious planning. An oblivious Haruhi pressed on, ticking points off on her fingers. "I mean, she's dark, she's got a temper, she's punk or goth or whatever. And she's not afraid of Kyouya-Senpai, which is something that you certainly can't say. And she's a little too…feral for you two. I mean, not in a bad way. Americans are all about freedom and independence. I guess she just had a little extra dose..." She trailed off, thinkng. The twins looked at each other, then shrugged indifferently. They never learned.

"All the more reason to make it a contest. Is everyone participating?" they asked mischievously. Huny-Senpai didn't say anything, which was odd. He usually participated in such things. Because of that, Mori-Senpai didn't say anything as well. The twins turned to Tamaki, but he didn't say anything either, which was even more scary.

"Milord?" Tamaki shrugged, although no one except Haruhi caught his glance towards her. She rolled her eyes. They then turned on Kyouya. "Come on! It'll be fun! Pleeease?" Kyouya pushed his glasses up so they glared and looked at the twins with death written in his face. They shrunk back and hid behind Tamaki.

"Never mind." They left in a hurry. Tamaki sighed and went back to his coffee. Haruhi watched their retreating firgures, then two more as Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai left. She turned to the Shadow Lord, everything in her stature screaming 'I'm nervous'.

"Kyouya-Senpai?"

"Yes Haruhi?" said Kyouya, looking up from his laptop.

"Uh… you're okay with what happened on Saturday, right?" she asked quietly, looking towards Tamaki. He was busy doing something with that teacup. She wasn't quite sure why that coffee was so fascinating… The Shadow King's chuckle broke her out of her thoughts.

"Don't worry about me Haruhi," he said in a way that made her swallow in fear. She wasn't quite sure if that was a good or bad response, but it was a dismissal. She nodded and walked away. Quickly.

She set herself to the task of cleaning up the cups and such that had been left behind. It was always her job, even after she had cleared her debt. She looked around as she worked. It was just her and the host kings. She wasn't sure if she liked the silence or not. She decided the quicker she got out the better, and she moved faster. She finished in a few short minutes and left. Tamaki followed her, and gave her a lift home. She was glad when she locked the door behind her, feeling like she was locking out all her problems.

"Why is nothing in the host club simple?"

**(A/N: Sry it's late. I usually update quicker than that, sry. Pls tell me what you think of Caitlyn! I think she's going to sufficiently make things interesting for the last two weeks of school. And summer as well. Review please!)**


	11. Goodnight

"Haruhi, worried about me? How amusing," said Kyouya to himself. He pulled a comb through his wet hair. "And that girl she brought in." He paused, then set the comb down and pulled the towel from around his neck, using it to dry his hair.

"That girl… there was something different about her. Aside from the fact that she didn't cringe in fear when I expected her to." Kyouya was, as usual, pondering after his shower. He dressed himself and sat on his bed, turning on his laptop. He knew the files wouldn't be there yet, but he felt the need to check anyway. "No one is like that without a reason. There's always something that makes people… what's the word? Punk. That's it. Americans… the big cities have a ton of tourists from everywhere. But that's the main place I've seen them. They're always like…Tamaki was when he first came to Ouran. What a nightmare." He shuddered, then turned back to his task. "Hmm… New York is a very important business capital, but she's not one of the big business owners' kids. She got in on the scholarship, after all. She's a commoner like Haruhi. So why are they here? Why didn't they stay in America? She's clearly not Japanese."

He looked at the page. Obviously, it was the same as before. And she wouldn't be on his family's database either. He sighed and turned the computer off, then collapsed onto the bed. As he stared at the ceiling, his thoughts kept straying back to Caitlyn. Who was this girl? Why wasn't she following the dress code? Why wasn't she afraid of him? Why wasn't she charmed by any of the hosts? And why did she wear sunglasses indoors? Too many questions. Kyouya hated questions.

The Shadow King wanted answers.

"Why Kyouya, you're in bed early," said a voice, flicking on the light.

"Wonderful…" he mumbled, covering his eyes with the back of his hand. He growled and sat up, giving his sister his best low-blood-pressure-demon-king glare. She faltered, but continued on her way to the bed. His siblings were used to his demonic behavior after he woke up. She sat down next to him.

"So, why are you in bed so early? And how did it go with that girl? You're lucky, it's not every day that father asks you to do something you want to do."

"How did you even…never mind," He rolled over on his side so he was facing his sister. "She likes someone else. Now can I go back to sleep?"

"Oh, that's too bad. Are you alright?"

"Hai! Now go away!"

"Alright, little brother. Just checking in."

"Now check out," he said darkly, venom dripping from his voice. Fuyumi smiled and left, clicking off the light as she did so. There was something else occupying his mind besides that girl. And she would know what it was in due time.

* * *

Tamaki bit his lip in frustration and thought. After their talk, Haruhi hadn't treated him any differently. And she hadn't told him he was allowed to tell. And she hadn't even let him into her apartment after school. Had anything changed?

"She let me drive her home," he said to himself begrudgingly. He ran his hand thrugh his hair although he felt like pulling his hair _out_. He couldn't tell his father either, because although he hadn't told her about that part, she said not to tell anyone. Tamaki was many things, but he was also more pure than one could think of a Host King. When it came to real love, he was all about everything that real love should be. Whether it was a good thing or a bad thing… it was yet to be known. But the 'sacred bonds of trust' in a relationship were something he thought was important, fortunately for Haruhi.

"I can't take this anymore!" he cried. "I'm calling her." He picked up his phone in his usual dramatic fashion and pressed and held down the number two. Of course she was on speed dial. All of the host members were. First was Kyouya, obviously. Despite his cold outer-shell, it had been Tamaki to be the first to see though that. And so he still confided in him, and called him… whether or not Kyouya wanted to be his confidant. And up until then it was mostly wishful thinking, as she never really picked up her phone anyhow.

"Moshi Moshi."

"You sound so cute!" He could practically hear her roll her eyes.

"Hai, Senpai? What do you want?"

"I just needed to hear your voice…and…stuff…" he trailed off. Haruhi sighed.

"What's wrong Senpai?"

"Nothings wrong!" He began to sweat. How did she know something was wrong?! In his usual theatrical style, he began to stutter and exaggerate.

"Vehement, aren't we? A little too vehement…" she teased.

"Alright! You've been acting the same way as before and you didn't let me come in and you're not letting me tell anyone of our undying love that will extend beyond the time on this earth!" He said in his usual theatrical fashion. On the other end Haruhi closed her eyes and counted to three.

"And this is the guy that I picked when I had three other equally good looking and rich guys after me?" she said only half joking to herself, forgetting that he could hear her. After a few seconds of his frantic voice on the other end, she cut him off. "After all this time you can't tell the difference from what's a joke and what's real." There was silence at the other end.

"You remember what you said on the bridge?"

"What, you thought I'd forget bringing you to your senses only to fall _off_ of the bridge so you had to save me? _Again_?" she said frankly.

"Well… it could have been worse." He paused. And Haruhi swallowed, wondering what he was going to say. "I could have gone with her." She sighed.

"We had this conversation already Senpai. If you were worrying about me not letting you tell anyone, it was because I didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. And also, there's the little fact that I'm supposed to be a _boy_ at school. The host club wasn't the only reason that I remained male. All the teachers think I'm male. It's been recorded hat I'm male, I'm assuming, in the school records. If I was to show that I was female, I'd have to go through the trouble of fixing everything with the school. Not to mention the rumors that would go around with the students. I mean, I have no problem with being labeled as gay, and I don't have that many customers to lose because I'd be in a relationship, but what about all those girls that designate you as a host? Think about it. We can hang out. If you want to call it dating, okay. I just think that Kyouya-Senpai would kill you, and maybe me, for making the club lose money."

_And maybe out of jealousy too...although I doubt you know about that,_ she thought.

"Oh…" was all he said, after a minute.

"And about not letting you come in, you didn't ask! Now can I go to bed Senpai?!" He cringed away from the phone.

"Hai, Haruhi. Goodnight," he smiled, that face he got when he thought he was humoring someone. She could almost see it, and she suppressed her sigh of annoyance.

"Goodnight Senpai," she said in an irritated tone. She was about to take the phone away from her ear when he spoke again.

"Oh, Haruhi?"

"Hai?"

"… never mind."

"Good_night_, Senpai."

"Night." He gently closed the phone and stuck it into the charger. In his usual thespian manner, he floated to the bed and collapsed. "Goodnight…Haruhi…" He whispered as he drifted off.

**(A/N: Sry, that was corny. ANd it didn't really cover much...But I'm in a weird mood today, so sry if it isn't my best… But thnx to readers, and pls review!)**


	12. Judgmental Caitlyn

Caitlyn sat in homeroom with a bored look on her face. The twins had decided to go back to torturing Haruhi for a little while, giving her time to think. So she sat, and thought about the host club.

She could tell that the Host King didn't like her too much. Whether there was a reason beyond the fact that he was scared of her, she didn't know. But she figured it was better for her, as she didn't have to deal with his stupidity. The twins had taken a liking to her on the other hand, and Haruhi seemed to be becoming a friend. She had the feeling that she didn't have many female friends. And she had yet to find out why she was dressed like a boy…

The two seniors seemed to be neutral about her. The tall one didn't speak much, and instead seemed to communicate with actions. She could tell that he was a big brother figure to the shorter one. She didn't understand why they treated him like he was a lower schooler. So he liked bunnies and cake, okay, but wasn't he just as experienced? She shrugged, figuring that it was better for her to treat him as the older student that he was, whether or not the others did.

And then there was the one who had greeted her. Kyouya. She didn't really like him from the start, despite his feigned charm. She thought he was far too arrogant, and acted as if he owned the place. He seemed to want everyone to fear him just because of his social status. It made her sick. She'd decided he was a jerk, and she wasn't going to let him scare her. She hated bullies, and she'd decided that he was one. Determined, she set off for English class with her three new friends.

Caitlyn, obviously, was the best at English, as it was her first language. Unfortunately, some of the students were fascinated by New York, and by the end of class she had usually accumulated more notes passed to her from students than she had taken from the teacher. In addition to the notes, they swarmed to her after class. Walking to the next class, the twins thought about one of the questions that had gone unanswered.

"What _did_ your parents do in New York?" asked the twins after the crowd had cleared away. Caitlyn stiffened, but continued to walk at her usual fast pace, which always made the three walk faster to keep up. She said it was a New York thing.

"If I told you I'd have to kill you," she said, a bit snappily. Haruhi looked at her, bemused. Usually when teasing the twins her voice was like theirs; mischievous and light. But her voice then was dark, and a bit strained. Haruhi gave the twins a look when they tried to press on.

"Demon Queen," they muttered. Haruhi ignored them. For the rest of the day she tried to coax Caitlyn into opening up.

It didn't work.

By the last period, Caitlyn had gotten back to her old self though, and was happily torturing the twins…physically and mentally. It was amusing to watch them being on the receiving end of mischief for once. Of course they gave as good as they got, and Caitlyn was finding that she had met her match in mischief…or matches, rather. And she and Caitlyn were bonding fast. Being stuck surrounded by 'rich bastards' was something that brought them together. Caitlyn even said it that day at lunch, upon seeing the prices for food…and what they were eating. Haruhi watched the antics of the twins and Caitlyn with a hidden smile. She was glad when they got to the club though, and the four had to separate. Their constant bickering was amusing to an extent. After a while it was annoying.

"You're an odd student, you know that?" asked Caitlyn. She decided it was time to ask why she was dressed like a boy.

"…why do you think that?" Caitlyn looked at her, thinking, then found a way to tell her she knew the truth without accusing her of anything.

"I'm observant," she began as she shrugged. "People only see this." She gestured to her outfit, her appearance. "They don't see past the clothes, and when they do all they see is that I'm actually pretty. Hardly anyone sees past both of my shells. It's hard to see, since I often don't want them to. You, on the other hand… it's easy to see that you're a girl. Why no one else can see _that_, I have no idea."

Haruhi froze in shock, her whole body stiffening. No one had guessed right away. Although Kyouya was the first to know, she was quite sure he had known from his computer files, not from her appearance. This girl had just waltzed in and analyzed her. Was she judgmental or actually on to something? Haruhi didn't know. Haruhi looked at her, wondering what other tricks she had up her sleeves…

"…figuratively speaking," she mumbled, looking at Caitlyn's bare arms. She gathered herself and took a deep breath. "How'd you know?"

"It's obvious. There are quite a lot of girly guys in my past. I am always friends with girly guys. Therefore, I can recognize girly guys. _You_ are not a girly guy. And it's pretty obvious you have a few curves. I mean, not a lot, but any person who isn't blind can see that there's something there…" she bit her lip, realizing that her words weren't coming out like she wanted them to. She changed the subject. "Speaking of which, why are you dressed like a guy?"

"Debt…previously," said a voice behind them. They had completely forgotten that they were standing by Kyouya's corner, and Haruhi jumped. Caitlyn was startled, but hid it well. She simply turned around and raised an eyebrow.

"How would debt make her a cross-dresser?" she asked charily. Haruhi sighed.

"I broke a vase and lost them money. I had to work for them because I couldn't afford to replace it. After I worked off the debt, I decided to stay as a guy because the whole school, including faculty, thinks I'm male. It's too much trouble to go back to being a girl, and personally, I don't really care about gender," said Haruhi, summarizing her whole time at Ouran in a few sentences. Caitlyn's eyebrows scrunched together as she looked from Kyouya, who had turned back to his laptop, to Haruhi, who was looking at her with a curious expression.

"I'm not gonna rat on you or anything. I just think that the whole thing is a little odd, that's all," she said with a smirk after realizing that was what Haruhi was fretting about. She relaxed a bit.

"Thanks."

"You know, you've been wasting time, which comes out of our money?" asked Kyouya looking up with his best death glare. Haruhi swallowed walked quickly over to a table of her designators. Caitlyn watched her with an amused expression on her face. She turned back to the Shadow Lord.

"Why is everyone so afraid of you?" she asked, her tone one of disgust. He looked up with an eyebrow raised and pushed his glasses up with his index finger.

"Do you know who I am?"

"Should I care?" His other eyebrow went up at that.

"I am a son of the Ootori family."

"I just transferred from America. I have no idea who any of you rich bastards are, and I really don't care. Politics and social status irritate me, as do power struggles," she said frankly. She had never been one to mince words. Whether it was a flaw or a blessing was yet to be seen. He chuckled darkly.

"It's not so much social status as it is the fact that our family owns an adequately large force of well trained private police."

"So what, if I piss you off, you kill me? Yeah, sure. Okay." She gave him a curt nod with a smirk, obviously mocking him. He fixed his glasses again, giving her a death glare. She simply smirked again and fixed her own glare on him. Neither noticed that they had attracted the attention of all the hosts, which in turn had attracted the attention of all the fans…which of course made up every single person in the room. Haruhi was frozen with a tray in her hands, Huny-Senpai with a piece of cake on a fork headed for his mouth, Tamaki with his finger under some poor girl's chin, the twins in their traditional pose on either side of a girl with their arms around her, and Mori-Senpai…stoic as usual. No one moved as the two continued to glare at each other, and the seconds ticked by…until Kyouya smirked.

He turned back to his laptop, and Caitlyn simply sat down and pulled a book on vampires from seemingly out of nowhere. Soon, everyone retuned to what they were doing. Caitlyn paused in her reading, and looked two feet away where Kyouya was also looking at her.

"Not bad…" he said, a small smirk appearing. Caitlyn smirked back.

"Not bad yourself. Maybe you'll win next time."

"…we'll see," he responded as he turned back to his laptop. Caitlyn rolled her eyes at what she thought was apparent egotism, annoyed that baiting him hadn't worked.

"I need an aspirin," Kyouya said to himself, turning back to his work. Caitlyn heard him, but ignored the comment and continued to read, smiling. She didn't know why he was so irritated already when she'd barely gotten started, but obviously she was making his life harder. And that was what she figured he deserved.

**(A/N: Well, I guess she hasn't seen past Kyouya's shells either. I'm sry this took so long!!! I went on vacation, and I didn't have a cp with internet access! Anyway…review pls!)**


	13. Dates and Assignments

"Your father is asking for you, sir," said a voice at his door. Kyouya sighed inwardly, dreading the encounter. What was he going to say to his father? That the girl didn't like him as anything but a friend? He wasn't going to accept that.

He adjusted his glasses and stood, walking with a mask of confidence to his father's office. The door was open, and he paused in the doorway, looking at the back of his father's large office chair. He often forgot that he was the one who technically owned the company. Although, it didn't really matter that he was in charge, as he was still his father, and he was still head of the family. He was sure his father knew that it was he who had bought the company, but neither had acknowledged it and so it would also be unwise to say anything. Although it was times like this that he wished that he could just…

"Well what are you standing out there for? Come in."

"You asked for me, father?"

"What's your progress with the girl?" Kyouya hid his annoyance. Haruhi was a person, not a business project. He swallowed any and all emotion and responded in a monotone voice.

"She's not interested in me. She's currently romantically involved with someone else."

"Who?" Kyouya paused. They were walking on thin ice here. He knew that his father and Tamaki's father despised each other. What would he say?

"I don't know. I heard her talking about him," he responded. For all the he was a hopeless idiot, he was his friend. His best friend. Although, Kyouya wouldn't admit anything to anyone. His father spun around in his chair, surveying his son for any trace of a lie. But Kyouya had learned to control his emotions well, and his face was a carefully blank mask. His father, seemingly satisfied with his response, nodded.

"As I'm sure you know… there is a new transfer student. A girl also on scholarship, from America. Have you met her?"

"I have crossed paths with her. She is in the same class as some of my… acquaintances."

"Meaning your friends brought her to that little club of yours. Has she taken an interest in any of the students? Made friends and such?" Kyouya thought. He wasn't quite sure what his father was asking for. He decided lying was best.

"Not that I can see, but most students have taken an interest in her. A person dressed differently and coming from a different ethnic background causes a stir, as you can see."

"Since you failed so miserably trying to win over the other special student, I will be generous and give you another chance. If you can convince this girl to like you, perhaps… I will be satisfied." Kyouya looked up sharply. What did he mean by that? He couldn't mean…he couldn't. Could he?

* * *

"Senpai, are you going to make it a habit of calling me every night?"

"Why not? Isn't that what we're supposed to do?" Haruhi sighed. She wasn't in the mood for his ridiculous need to follow every single romance rule that had ever existed.

"Senpai, it's not required."

"But I want to hear your beautiful melodic voice every day!" he whined.

"You _saw_ me earlier today. Next time, bring a tape-recorder and you can play it at night," she said, annoyed. She rolled her eyes then, practically seeing his puppy-dog face. "Is there anything you actually wanted?"

"Not really…" She was about to snap at him, then sighed. She had a report due the next day, and had gone home as quickly as possible. She felt a bit guilty about leaving Tamaki at school, and not telling him she was leaving, but… she sighed again. She knew that she always gave in to him in the end anyway.

"Well, you're the one paying for all these phone-calls. I don't really have enough money for it."

"Of course!" he cried happily. She refrained from groaning and let him chatter in her ear fro a while. Then, something he said caught her attention.

"_What_ about Friday?" she asked, dread creeping out from the shadows.

"I said how does Friday sound?"

"For…"

"A date, Haruhi." She could hear that smile in his voice, the gentle, humoring one. It didn't help her flipping stomach any at all.

"Uh…"

"Great! Pick you up at eight?"

"Um…"

"Wonderful! See you tomorrow my love!" the phone clicked and her next 'uh' met silence. She slowly put the phone down, then let her head fall forward onto her textbook with a groan.

"Wonderful my foot," she mumbled.

**(A/N: A date? Hmm… Sry it's so short. I was going to make the date later, as I had other plot points planned, but I decided to stretch it out. AngelSakura was pleading for mushy stuff, so… Hope you liked the chapter. As always, pleads for reviews)**


	14. No One the Insomniac

"Hi Caitlyn."

"Sup Haruhi?" asked Caitlyn in English.

"Sup?" she asked. Caitlyn smirked and shook her head, then covered her mouth when a yawn overtook her.

"Why weren't you early?" asked Caitlyn, suspicious. Haruhi sighed.

"I didn't sleep very well, and so I slept a little late," she said tiredly. She yawned, punctuating her words. _I was worrying about Senpai asking me out! _Caitlyn tilted her head and looked at her as Haruhi bit her lip and looked worried.

"What is it?" she asked, covering her mouth with a fist when a yawn surfaced again. Haruhi looked up at the girl. She hadn't thought about it, but she was the same height as the twins. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. That wasn't what she should be thinking about now… "Alright, it's okay if you don't want to tell me. But if you need me, just let me know."

Haruhi looked at her, slightly confused, until she realized that she had mistaken her head shake for a no. She pursed her lips, wondering if she could trust Caitlyn. After all, she _must_ have dated before. As she opened her mouth to say something, Caitlyn yawned again. Haruhi looked at her.

"Why are _you_ tired?"

"I'm an insomniac. I don't want to take medicine because it could be addictive. It occasionally interferes with my school work, but a bit of coffee in the morning tides me over. I hate coffee, but it was that or medication. I figured it was the lesser of two evils," she said, yawning _again_. "But we ran out, and so I didn't have any this morning."

She also used cream to get rid of the bags under her eyes, but they were still slightly visible. It was one of the reasons she wore the sunglasses…_one_ of the reasons.

"Well…we have coffee at the Host Club. Can you make it?"

"I guess…" she said, as another yawn assailed her.

Throughout the day, Haruhi tried to get Caitlyn alone to tell her about her date. She had no idea what to do, or wear, or how to act. She kept telling herself to stop worrying, it was only Senpai, but it kept nagging at the back of her mind. She sighed when it came time for the club, as she knew that it wasn't going to be possible to get a quiet moment in there. She sighed inwardly as she sat down with a customer.

"Looks like I'll have to call her or something," she said to herself. The girl who had designated her tilted her head in confusion.

"Who?" she asked. Haruhi looked at her.

"Oh, no one."

Caitlyn, as usual, was reading in a chair near Kyouya's corner…this time with a strong cup of coffee. They hadn't spoken at all, and it was a tense silence. Both were engrossed in words, although one happened to be researching the other. Kyouya, getting impatient with waiting for the files, had resorted to google-ing Caitlyn, to see what he found. All he got was repeated English articles on her amazing abilities as a student. He adjusted his glasses in annoyance, clicked on next again, and scrolled down.

"Honor roll… science fair… what's that?" He spotted a news article, but he couldn't read it. It was in English, and he needed some sort of subscription to the newspaper to read the whole thing. It said something about a car-crash, and it mentioned the name Kumar, but she couldn't make too much of the three sentences it showed him out. Kumar was a common last name, and it didn't help him much at all. He let out a sigh that was more of a growl in annoyance, and shut the laptop with a click.

"Why is this girl such an ambiguity?" he said to himself, annoyed.

"Who?" Kyouya twitched, startled a bit, and looked up to see Caitlyn's amused face.

_How did she hear that?_ he thought, annoyed a bit that she had startled him. This girl seemed to be annoying him a lot lately.

"Oh, no one," he said calmly. She shrugged and turned back to her book. "Absolutely no one." She looked at him from the corner of her eyes again, her eyebrows slightly creased.

"Weirdo," she said in English. He looked at her, not sure if he wanted to know what she'd just called him.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go and sell the last of these calendars." He whipped out a stack with the twins in their familiar pose in beach attire on the front. She watched as he went from table to table, using his charms to get girls to buy them all. Caitlyn got bored after the fifth sell.

"Amateurs," she said, smirking. "Those girls are no naïve and gullible. And shallow…" She paused and shrugged. "What did I expect from a bunch of rich bastards?" She laughed to herself, then suppressed a yawn. The coffee wasn't helping much.

"She's just like her," said Kaoru, startling her. She sighed. Obviously, she wasn't going to get any peace.

"Except more judgmental," agreed Hikaru. Caitlyn turned around with a scowl.

"Who're you calling judgmental?" she asked, knowing full well who they meant.

"Oh, no one," they said, smiling. She glared at them, annoyed that they were bothering her, and especially irritated that they were bothering her for something so trivial. She decided to play along.

"What do you want from my life?!" she snarled, making the twins tremble.

"Plenty of things," they said, grinning, despite the lightning sparking from her eyes. They put their arms around her. Exhausted and cranky, she decided she didn't want to deal with them. She pushed them both away…hard. They fell onto the floor in shock. She then sat down calmly, ignoring the stares of everyone else.

"Ikimasho!" The twins ran for it and hid behind Tamaki, who was still trying not to laugh. He'd often wanted to do the same to them after all.

"Milord, Milord, she's the spawn of the devil!" they cried, hiding behind him and peering over his shoulder.

"That was a little harsh, don't you think?" Caitlyn looked up into Kyouya's amused face.

"And threatening people with your force of private police isn't harsh?"

"Touché… but, in my defense, I've never really physically harmed them before. You're pretty much the only person…and I think I ought to thank you for it," He gave her a dazzling smile that made some girls watching swoon, but she rolled her eyes in response.

"There's a first time for everything. And they never respect my personal space."

"I got the impression that you have a problem with that," he said sarcastically, testing the boundaries of her temper. She looked up, her dark eyes hard and glinting, reminding him of onyx.

"Yes, I do. Think of it as a severe pet-peeve."

"I'll remember that," he said, opening his laptop. She smirked.

"Adding it to your stalker file?" she teased, opening her book and placing her attention in what she believed to be a more interesting set of words.

"Actually, yes," he said truthfully as he put it into his file. He had a file on virtually everyone. Until the files from her old school came in, he had to get his information manually. Caitlyn took it for sarcasm though, and chuckled.

"I might have to have you arrested," she said, yawning again. She sighed in annoyance and looked at the cup of coffee she was drinking. After thinking for a second or two, she drank the rest of it in three gulps, making a face at the taste. She wiped her mouth with a look of disgust.

"I thought I was the one with the private police."

"I have a few secret weapons of my own," she responded haughtily, turning the page. She was obviously not totally aware of the words coming out of her mouth.

"Like what, your attitude?" he asked, the amusement apparent in his voice. This girl was irritating him, and despite what his father wanted he was almost enjoying bickering with her.

"_My_ attitude? What about you, Mr. High-and-Mighty-I-Own-the-World-Bow-Down-and-I-Might-Spare-Your-Life?" she snapped, looking up from her book. He adjusted his glasses and looked at her.

"Is that what you think of me?" he asked, his voice more serious. _This might be harder than I thought._

"As a matter of fact, yes. I think you're a pompous jerk. But as they say, the higher the pedestal, the harder the fall." She adjusted her sunglasses and gave him a cat-like smirk.

"I don't plan on falling," he said, slightly and unpleasantly surprised.

"They never do." She gave him a look that he couldn't quite discern, stood up, and walked away to get more coffee. He watched her, his annoyance growing.

_This is going to be much harder than I thought. She makes me want an aspirin faster than anything else…except maybe Tamaki. Well, it's a task set by my father. What did I expect?_

Haruhi watched their exchange from afar. It was obvious that Caitlyn was keeping Kyouya busy. She had a ferocious temper, that was for sure. She felt a slight weight lift from her shoulders. It was beginning to look like Kyouya had a new puzzle to solve… meaning she didn't have to worry about him for while. She let out a sigh of relief, and turned back to her questioning designator with a genuine smile; the one that made her the natural type.


	15. Siblings' Heart to Heart

Caitlyn arrived home with a sigh of relief, closing the door behind her and leaning on it. After taking a few deep breaths, she pushed off of the door and walked into her room, putting her backpack down. She smiled and walked into the hallway, then opened the door to the room next to her. A boy was lying on a bed, tossing a tennis ball up in the air and catching it repeatedly. He had curly black hair, cut short around his face. His skin was the same tone as Caitlyn's, his eyes just as large and dark. He had looks to match his sister's as well. The only difference was he was dressed in a cotton t-shirt and jeans. He looked up from his Ipod and ball and grinned.

"How was school, sis?" he asked in English. Caitlyn rolled her eyes and sighed. The boy moved over to make room for her. "Those Host-Club kids? You know, back home you would be screaming like a banshee about them being preppies."

"They _are_ preppies. All of them. But I'm not complaining because, well, they're not bad looking." The boy suppressed a "yuck" face.

"Isn't that why they're hosts? And did you figure out why that girl is dressed like a boy?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

"Oh, yeah, she was in debt with them and had to be a host to pay it off. Now she thinks it's too much trouble to be a girl again."

"Sounds like a tomboy I know." He looked at his sister. "Although…what is up with that outfit?"

"Oh, shut up, you little eleven year old sports freak," she said, ruffling his hair. He shoved her hand off, and glared at her.

"Emo!" he teased as she walked out chuckling. She froze. She opened the door and gave him an evil glare, making him shrink back.

"I am _not_ emo Andrew!" she snarled. The door closed again. The boy shuddered, then turned his Ipod on, lay down, and began tossing the ball again.

Caitlyn turned on the stove, and set to making dinner that night. Sometimes her aunt made food, but Caitlyn usually tried to be nice. Her aunt worked hard to make enough for the three of them. That was the second reason they had moved from America. Her business had a better paying opening there. They'd moved in the end, figuring it didn't matter. After all, all they had left was each other…

She shook her head to clear the dark thoughts, pushing them back into the corners of her mind. She poured the pasta into the boiling water, stirring absentmindedly. She set the timer to tell her when to turn off the diced meat that she was going to add to it. Fire… red hair…those twins…they reminded her of her friends back home, Cocky, always messing with her. But it all changed after…That. They treated her differently, looked at her a different way. Of course, she had always been treated differently because of how she dressed and acted. But for some reason, her exoticism was good here. But those stupid newspaper stories…and of course everyone read the paper in her old school. She pursed her lips, annoyed. True friends would have treated her the same way, and just been sympathetic. But she hated the pitying looks… that silence when she walked into a room. She'd always been treated differently…but there was something _different_ about her _difference_ after That. She hated it.

Ouran, on the other hand, was almost heaven sent. Of course, they were all rich bastards, but she didn't care. This was a different country. A different school. A different life. She had a clean slate, and she wanted to make the most of it. She smiled happily. She like Ouran so far… the crazy kids, the ridiculous antics. Tamaki reminded her of some of her friends too. They all did. But Tamaki especially. She was the level-headed one, to bring her idiot best friend back down to Earth. Of course, not when her temper set off. But her best friend hadn't always been realistic…just like the Host King. Although, there was one major difference; her best friend used to be gay. And Tamaki was far from gay…being all over those girls. It made her a little sick to see these idiots being charmed by him. But she figured it was their fault for being too gullible.

She had finished draining the pasta and adding the sauce, meat, and spices when the phone rang. She sighed, assuming it was her aunt. She always called when she was going to be home later than eight, her usual time of arrival.

"Hello?" she said, picking up the phone. A familiar voice spoke on the other end… but not in English. It was a nervous voice, rambling about a date. "Haruhi, slow down! English is my first language, remember? Now start from the beginning."

She sat down with the phone, figuring the pasta needed to cool and the meat needed to cook. She listened to Haruhi's whole story, about how everyone had liked her and her decisions and problems, all the way up until her date and not wanting anyone to know. Caitlyn sighed. It was obvious that Haruhi had never been on a date before. With her small amount of experience, she wouldn't know what to wear or anything. Caitlyn thought fast…the next day was Thursday…if she called the twins that night… that would work perfectly.

"Alright, here's what we're going to do…"

* * *

Kyouya glared at the laptop screen. How long were these files that it was taking this long to get them organized and send them? He could only find out what was coming in. A file from the school shrink, a file from the principal himself, a file from several teachers, a file of interviews with her friends, the normal file, a file including everything about her from the newspaper, a file from her doctor, files from hospitals, a file from a lawyer's firm, a file from a school that she didn't attend, a file from the swim team… he kept on scrolling down. What was all this? He could understand it if she had a little bit of a long record because of her amazing intellect and her rambunctious attitude, but what the hell was all this?

What was worse was it wasn't even there for him to read, meaning more questions and no answers. He cursed and barely restrained himself from slamming the laptop closed, shutting it with a click instead. He sighed and glared at it again. He didn't understand how this one commoner girl could be causing him so much trouble.

And what was that earlier? Was she mad? Why did she feel the need to irritate him so? Obviously she disliked him, which made things difficult. Of course, his father had asked, and so he would try. But he didn't like her. She was too troublesome. She was attractive, but that wasn't all he was looking for. And what was he looking for? Did he even have a type? Business had never really allowed him to bother with relationships. Of course, there had always been girls fawning over him; he was attractive and powerful. But the girls at Ouran were pretty boring. They were all being trained to be perfect young ladies to be married off to rich men, or to take over companies if the parents were willing to let a female inherit. Either way, they weren't willing to risk anything or do anything that might get them into any trouble with their families or mess up their chances for whatever they were trying to do. He'd never had to think about this before. He took his glasses off and pinched the bridge of his nose, resting his head on that hand. He was tired of this game. He enjoyed playing games with people, true, but he didn't enjoy it when he was the one who had to do the work. He didn't enjoy it when he was the one getting played. He liked to be the one controlling things, giving people trouble. He didn't go through trouble. He _didn't_.

But it looked like Caitlyn was giving him trouble without trying.

"She's…just…" he searched for a word as his sister came in unnoticed. "She's inexorably intolerable."

"Who?" He looked up.

"No one," he lied. His sister smiled.

"Is it that girl that father wanted you to marry?"

"Which one are you talking about?" he asked dryly. She looked at him, confused.

"He asked you to marry another one?" Kyouya debated telling her, then decided that it couldn't do anymore damage. Hs sister always found out somehow anyway.

"There's an American exchange student, another specialized one. She's inexorably intolerable though. And she dislikes me. I'm not sure that I will be able to fulfill Father's wishes." Fuyumi beamed at him.

"You always find a way, otoutosan," she said confidently. She walked to the door. "Don't be too hard on yourself if it doesn't work out. And who knows? Opposites attract, right?" She left.

"I don't think our differences are the problem…" he said darkly to the empty room. "I think we're a little too close for comfort."

**(A/N: Well…they're not exactly hitting it off, are they? Review please!!!! Tell me what you think! What do you think will happen?)**


	16. Smiles and Preparations

Thursday was relatively uneventful. Tamaki whispered a few words to Haruhi about their date, making her blush. Huny-Senpai ate cake, Mori-Senpai watched, and they both got fawned over because they were leaving. The twins got screamed at by Caitlyn and Tamaki. The twins did their twincest act. Kyouya worked on his laptop and watched. Kyouya quarreled with Caitlyn. It was a usual day. Well…there was one thing.

"Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai are bringing in more customers than ever," said Kyouya to himself. Caitlyn looked up.

"It's good that they're leaving then?" she said, challenging him to say something he'd regret without thinking. He was beginning to learn to be careful around Caitlyn. He had the feeling she was going to get him in trouble. Caitlyn liked to stir up trouble. She found it amusing, especially when her victim was a jerk. She figured that Kyouya was most likely to say something he'd regret. He was right, obviously. She didn't like bullies. And she assumed that he was one. With all her insight, she hadn't quite looked past his cold and calculating exterior. For all her talk of shells, she didn't see through his.

"I never said that," he said looking at the two seniors. They were surrounded by teary-eyed girls. Of course, everyone was bringing cake for them…them meaning Huny. It was actually better for Kyouya, as he didn't have to pay for the shorter man's snack bill. He adjusted his glasses. "Truthfully, I am going to miss them…"

"Ah ha! A soft side. I knew it!" she teased covering her surprise. He suppressed a sigh. He forgot that she had super-sensory hearing or something, and always heard him when he talked to himself.

"How do you do that?" he asked, aggravated.

"I have sensitive ears," she said with a wink. Her face turned serious. "Actually, it's a bit of a problem. New York was not a quiet place. Also, I think it contributes to my insomnia." He looked at her thoughtfully, then turned to his computer.

"Actually, based on this, the goodbye party we have scheduled for tomorrow is going to make a lot more money than I had estimated. I suppose you never know what you have until it is gone, as they say." Caitlyn looked up at the thinking Demon-King.

"Well, perhaps you could throw them an actual party, with just their friends. If you have all that excess money." Kyouya looked at her, adjusting his glasses with his forefinger. She did the same, but not in her usual way but teasing him by copying him. He smiled then. A real smile, not a smirk. Surprised, she smiled back hesitantly. Their eyes met, and Caitlyn was beginning to think she'd been wrong about him-

"He smiled! She's devil spawn I tell you Milord! He smiled!" the twins cried, grabbing Tamaki and spinning him around. By the time he had turned the two were glaring at the twins, and there was nothing to see. No one had seen anything, obviously, except the twins. All everyone saw were the two students glaring, for once a joined force. As everyone settled back into their activities, Caitlyn looked up to find Kyouya staring at her. She winked at him and zipped her lips with her fingers, promising not to tell anyone he'd smiled. He chuckled, adjusted his glasses, and turned back to his laptop.

"It's not a bad idea," he said to himself.

"What can I say, I'm a genius," said Caitlyn, her voice laced with hubris. He smirked, but did not respond.

* * *

It was Friday, and Haruhi found herself standing in front of Caitlyn's building. She was beginning to wonder if asking Caitlyn to help her had been the right thing to do. Haruhi looked around. Caitlyn didn't live too far from her, actually. She was curious to see what it looked like inside. She watched as Caitlyn opened the door. She heard a thudding noise, but ignored it as she surveyed the apartment. The door opened to a relatively long hallway with a short wall on the left and a living room on the right. It held a long couch and a single-seat one with a small TV. The wall was just a place for coat hooks, and it was only half a foot wide, with the kitchen's stove behind it. It was a small, but decent kitchen, filled with a decently clean counter, with a stove, a microwave, a toaster, a sink, and plenty of cupboards. The hallway ended in a bathroom, and had two doors on each side.

"Andy, I've brought a friend home!" called Caitlyn in English. Haruhi listened to the language with her head slightly tilted. She waited as the thudding noise stopped, and a curly-haired boy popped out of the room closest to her on the left. He was holding a blue rubber ball, which explained the thumping noise. His eyes widened and his eyebrows shot up.

"You brought a guy home? Does auntie know?" he asked in English. Caitlyn mentally slapped him.

"Shut up about Aunt Alexandra when you talk in Japanese. _She_ doesn't know. Haruhi's the girl who gets to wear pants and not those horrendous yellow nightmares they try to pass off as a dress code," she said, still in English.

"Oh, I see," he said, nodding. Caitlyn sighed in relief. Her brother wasn't going to be a pain in the butt after all. He turned to Haruhi and looked at her thoughtfully.

"Hello. I am Haruhi," she said carefully in English. Her teacher would be proud. He gave her a dazzling smile, and she couldn't help but be reminded of the host club.

"I speak Japanese," he said. She smiled back.

"You'd do well in the host club," said Haruhi thoughtfully. Caitlyn's head snapped to her.

"God forbid! Don't give him any ideas, please!" she said. Andy looked flattered, but shook his head.

"Nah. I like sports, not being some human museum for girls," he said. "No offense. But I'm gonna get back to homework now. Bye." He popped back into his room, and Caitlyn let out a sigh of relief.

"Come on. Let's get you ready," she said. She headed down the hall and entered the farther room on the right. Haruhi paused in the door, expecting black, chrome, vampires and…

Books?

Caitlyn's room had blue walls, and the bookshelves were wood. This was surprising enough, but the most shocking thing was but the whole room contained nothing but books. Books lined every single wall and there were piles of them on the floor, on her desk, and everywhere else Haruhi could see. Caitlyn shrugged, giving her a little embarrassed smile.

"Sorry about all the books," she said with a shrug. "I've always wanted to have a personal library one day. Obviously…I have a while to go before I have enough money or room. I may be punk, but I'm also a nerd. That's why I'm in Ouran…" She trailed off.

"Sit down and make yourself comfortable," she said, motioning to a chair.

Haruhi sat down, and watched as Caitlyn opened the top drawer of her bedside table and started pulling out beauty products. Haruhi began to feel nervous. Of course, Caitlyn had designed the dress and told the twins to go to her apartment and pick it up. They were happy to have her address, and they had gotten the dress done in time, much to the surprise of Haruhi. Caitlyn was supposed to help out with everything else. She examined Caitlyn's eyeliner and silver-black lipstick.

"You're not going to make me look…" she trailed off, looking for a nice way to express her question. Caitlyn chuckled.

"No, I'm not going to make you punk. Actually, I've been told I clean up rather well. I've had to attend decent parties you know…" Haruhi tried to imagine Caitlyn dressed normally, or even in a dress, and failed miserably.

Haruhi had no problems with the makeup. She had to admit that she saw very little difference, except she looked more feminine. She wasn't sure how Caitlyn had accomplished that, but she was grateful…until she saw the dress.

"I am _not_ wearing that," she said, looking at the dress that Caitlyn had pulled out. It was black, which was a given for Caitlyn, but it wasn't leather or anything. It was a strappy little thing that had Haruhi pressed against the book-laden wall, as far away from it as possible.

The dress hugged her torso, with a built-in padded bra. Caitlyn had taken precautions, knowing that Haruhi wasn't exactly blessed in the top region. There were two spaghetti straps that went over the shoulders. The back had a V cut out of it, with straps crisscrossing over her skin in the middle of her back. It flared a bit at the hips, twirling out a bit when she spun, and draping delicately when she stood still. At least, it would if Haruhi would try it on. Caitlyn held it up.

"Come on Haruhi. You'll look gorgeous!" she said, making puppy-dog eyes. Haruhi looked at her, perplexed. There was something wrong with a punk girl wearing a spike band making puppy-dog eyes at someone to get them to try on a strappy little black dress. She sighed.

"I didn't want to have to do this…but if you don't wear it I'll call the twins and tell them who the dress was really for, why, and that you won't wear it," said Caitlyn with a little cat-like smile, waving the dress around with her right hand by the strap, the other reaching for the phone. Haruhi froze.

"No, they'll come over here and force me into…! Oh," she said, realizing that was exactly what Caitlyn wanted them to do. She looked at her, slightly horrified. "You're as evil as Kyouya-Senpai!" Caitlyn looked startled. Perhaps she'd been right after all…perhaps he _was_ a bully and an overconfident jerk. But then again, her hubris wasn't something to be admired, so that was hypocritical. She shrugged, and decided to play along with the stereotype she was labeled as.

"Ha. I'm worse, my friend. You ain't seen nothin' yet," Caitlyn said with an evil glint in her eye. Haruhi shuddered and grabbed the dress.

"Alright…alright. I'll wear it," she said. Caitlyn grinned evilly and shoved her into the bathroom.

"Don't mess up your make-up!" she called as she shut the door. Haruhi sighed and began to undress.

When she had put the dress on, she fearfully looked in the mirror…and started in surprise. The girl she saw there was familiar, and yet…she wasn't. She was someone that Haruhi hadn't seen in so long, she'd forgotten she existed. Haruhi used to see her everyday when she dressed as a girl; this sweet innocent look. There was no mistaking her for male. The last time she had seen this face was before she went to Ouran, when she still wore the girl's uniform. She bit her lip and turned, looking at herself in near-awe. She heard a knock on the door then. She bit her lip, and turned the knob.

"Caitlyn, I…oh, sorry," she said, looking down at her friend's brother. He looked up at her with wide eyes, and stepped aside so she could get out.

"You look like a girl! I mean…not like before. I mean…you look nice," he finished awkwardly, scuttling into the bathroom and closing the door. Just then Caitlyn appeared. She surveyed her work with a satisfied smile.

"Perfect. Now put these on," she said, handing her some cute strappy sandals that had an inch of heel.

"I'm not ready for this mother," she groaned to herself. Caitlyn smirked.

"Of course you are," she said, pushing Haruhi into her room. Haruhi sighed and sat down to put on the shoes. It was going to be a long night… she could tell.

**(A/N: Sry, this is long. The date'll be next! Sry, the internet got messed up, so I couldn't submit anything. But I have more than one chapter finished now, so you'll be getting more than one. Keep reading please, and reviews are begged for!)**


	17. In the Garden of a Resturant

"I know, just be myself, you said that," sad Haruhi to Caitlyn, who was going over points again a few minutes before Tamaki was suppose to arrive. She was slightly nervous, but only because she'd never been on a date, and also because she was sure that he was taking her to some ritzy resturant that she would feel out of place in.

"Wait," said Caitlyn, a thought coming to her. Haruhi looked at her, nervous. Caitlyn had a look on her face of mischief and curiosity, and a badly hidden smile. "Do you know how to kiss?"

"WHAT?"

"Seriously, what if he wants to kiss you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. She watched the small female stutter, move her hands in meaningless gestures, and essentially freak out. "Look, I was just kidding." Haruhi stopped and looked at her.

"Calm down, I've said it a million times! Look, I'm sure that as the host king or whatever, he knows what he's doing. He's an idiot, but not about that stuff," she said, trying to reassure her. She then realized what she said probably wasn't reassuring. She looked at the ceiling. _If I knew she was gonna flip out this much I wouldn't have said anything._

"Did you really have to worry me more than I was already?" asked Haruhi, obviously annoyed. Andy popped out of his room then, and went into the kitchen, pouring himself some water.

"You shouldn't be worrying. You look nice. And besides, the guy's smitten with you already. Plus, you're wearing something really out of the norm for you. Therefore, the presumption that he'll be so distracted by your appearance and his feelings for you he won't notice any small mistakes is a completely valid one," he said nonchalantly. He picked up the glass and took a sip, leaning against the counter and eyeing the two girls. "I swear, why do girls flip out when they're pretty? I don't get it. Like, my sister for example. She knows she's pretty, but she still flips out on the first few dates." He shrugged and walked back to his room. "Anyways, don't worry about it. Have fun. Nice to meet you."

Haruhi watched Andy, stupefied as he walked into his room and shut the door. She looked to Caitlyn, who had her eyes closed and was and shaking her head.

"He's like me…in some ways. He's always like that. Don't worry about it," she said, smirking. The doorbell rang then, and Haruhi jumped.

"I…uh…have to use the bathroom! Bye!" she stuttered, starting for the end of the hall. Caitlyn grabbed her by the arm, while simultaneously opening the door. Tamaki stood there, bent over, a flower extended. She yanked her friend forward and tossed her into the arms of her surprised date.

"Thank me later, and take her away before she locks herself in my house," she said, tossing a little black purse at him. "It's got all her important stuff in it, her keys and everything. She can pick up her backpack tomorrow. Have fun!" She shut the door in their faces.

The two stood there for a moment, bewildered. He stared at her, his eyes widening. She recognized the same reaction she had gotten when he saw her in bathing-suit, a chill traveling up his spine. He took a deep breath calming himself. Then, Tamaki resumed his position with the rose. Haruhi hesitantly took it and her purse. He offered her his arm, and after staring at it like a foreign object, she took it with a small smile and let him help her into his limo.

Caitlyn watched, chuckling, from the door's eyehole. She turned, picked up her book from seemingly out of thin air, and collapsed on the couch. She smiled absently as she opened it.

"I love helping people," she said with a dark chuckle. She turned back to her book and settled down for a nice read before her aunt got home.

They stopped at a large ritzy restaurant, making Haruhi nervous. She wasn't quite suited for his high life. The door of the limo opened, and he slid out gracefully, then turned and held out his arm again. She stared at him, then accepted it.

They walked up the stairs together, her hand on his arm. She thought that they had walked out of a movie, or perhaps she was dreaming, but her breath caught was she walked into the restaurant. The whole place was low-lit, with a few musicians playing softly on a slightly raised platform. There were marble pillars, and a high ceiling. There was also a stair, and the ceiling opened in the middle, with a rail around it. A chandelier hung from the top, and you could hear the gentle murmur of conversation. Haruhi was getting more nervous by the second. She felt like she shouldn't be there. A waiter appeared out of nowhere.

"We have a reservation, table for two, Suoh?" said Tamaki gallantly. The waiter nodded.

"Right this way, sir," he said, leading them past the tables and out into a garden of some sort. They followed the waiter past a few tables and onto a stone pathway, leading to a gazebo of some sort. They walked up three steps to a table underneath it, reminding her of the place in the maze where they had hid. It was surrounded by a rose-adorned trellis, and they were out of sight from everyone. Haruhi looked around, her nervousness increasing. Tamaki pulled out a chair for her, and pushed it in once he sat, then sat down himself. Haruhi took the menu offered to her, and watched, bewildered, as the waiter walked out and almost disappeared. So…they were alone.

She looked around then relaxed a bit. She could almost forget that they were in an expensive five star restaurant…almost. She wondered if he'd set this all up himself, knowing how she felt. Probably. He was an idiot, but unexpectedly perceptive when t came to others. She looked around again, then at the smiling face of her date.

"You don't need to be so nervous," said Tamaki. Of course, he had sensed her unease. She looked at him, not calmed at all by his words.

"I'm okay. It's just that this place is…beyond me," she said, shaking her head. Her usual manner of slight disdain for the ostentatiousness of his world came back, and she began to feel better, and more like herself. _Just pretend you're at school eating lunch._

"It's nice, isn't it?" he asked, plainly hopeful. She didn't look at him though, as she was still observing the place, and so didn't see a need to be anything but frank.

"Actually, it's a bit much for me. I don't see why we couldn't just go on a simple picnic in the park or something," she said. She looked at him and observed his clothes. He was wearing a dress shirt and jeans… which would have been fine in the park. She could have dressed normal in the park. She then looked at his hurt face and sighed. "But this is nice too."

"I'm glad you like it," he said with a relieved smile. She smiled back, feeling a lot more at ease. "I assumed you'd prefer this to sitting inside, since you prefer simpler things to the flamboyancy of the richer life."

Haruhi's smile widened. Of course he'd known. The rest of her tension disappeared, and she let him ramble. She didn't know why she'd been so worried now. She couldn't believe that she'd been fretting about Senpai. He wasn't acting very different, and neither was she. True, their relationship was slightly more physical, she thought, noticing that somehow he had managed to hold her hand without her noticing. She knew that he probably understood far more than they accredited him with…although he was still an idiot sometimes. She didn't mind that too much though, or she wouldn't have been there. She then realized he'd asked her a question, and settled into the conversation.

Long after they had ordered and their food had come and went, Haruhi was still feeling herself. They were talking, the conversation was flowing, and Haruhi was actually enjoying herself. She wasn't used to fine food, and seeing her delight in what was to him a simple pleasure had made his night all the better, and he was enjoying himself as well. He'd delighted in seeing Haruhi, who was usually calm and indifferent, delight in food. It was the one thing she let herself indulge in, and it was a pleasure to have caused her delight. In all, it was a good night for both of them.

"Tonight was nice," said Haruhi, thinking, as they walked to the limo.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it." There was a comfortable silence, and she looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He opened the door for her before the driver could get out to do it, and climbed in after her, shutting the door. The screen between the driver and them was up already, and he looked at her as the car moved. He put an arm around her and pulled her to him so that her head rested on his shoulder. She looked up at him, her eyes slightly widened.

"Thank you for dinner Senpai," she said, blushing slightly. He smiled.

"You're welcome."

Before either of them knew it, the ride was over. He walked her up to her door, and they stood there, facing each other for a moment. Haruhi looked away first.

"Goodnight, Senpai," she said, reaching for her keys. He grasped her chin, titling her head up, and kissed her.

"Goodnight," he said after letting her go. She was blushing slightly now, and she fumbled while opening the door. She stood in the doorway and watched as he drove away, waving out the window. She waved back, and floated inside on a cloud.

**(A/N: That was so corny… I hope you liked it though, despite that. Sry I didn't do much detail with the date, but I didn't want it to be too long. You'll be hearing more about other characters now hopefully… reviews please!)**


	18. Puzzle Pieces

"So, how'd it go?" asked Caitlyn, opening the door for her friend. She watched as Haruhi blushed and stepped in, holding out a bag.

"No, keep the dress and shoes. It was made for you, and my feet grew out of those a while ago. My feet match my height," she said, slightly embarrassed, rubbing the back of her neck with her hand. Haruhi looked at her, wondering why, and then realized that her attire was far from the norm. Caitlyn unhooked her backpack from the coat-rack and handed it to her. Haruhi took it absently, observing her outfit.

She was wearing a huge black cotton t-shirt with no design and jean cut-off shorts. No eyeliner, no spike bands, nothing. Only silver earrings with sapphires and a silver anklet, with…flowers hinging from it? Her hair was in a long pony-tail, not its usual free, wavy, sleek appearance that she was used to. But she was somehow prettier without all that. She had…what was it that she had said about her last night? Natural beauty. Her exotic appearance was just as pronounced, Haruhi noticed. She was still very…different.

"I haven't changed out of my pajamas," she said, noticing Haruhi's gaze. "Sorry about the appearance. You know…insomnia. When I can sleep, I do."

"Oh…" she said, looking at her, surprised. A woman sat on the sofa and was looking at her, away from the television.

"This is Aunt Alexandra. I live with her. You met Andy," she said, as her brother came out of the kitchen dressed in flannel pants and a loose t-shirt. Her aunt was dressed in loose cotton pants and a t-shirt as well.

"I didn't mean to come so early, but you said I could pick up my bag today…" she let the sentence hang. So…Caitlyn didn't live with her parents?

"Who is this young man? He was here yesterday?" asked Aunt Alexandra in English. Haruhi watched with interest as they spoke, noticing her name in their conversation.

"Oh, nice to meet you, Haruhi," said her aunt in Japanese, getting up. She shook her hand. "We're not exactly presentable. I hope you don't mind."

"My mistake. I should have called," she said. Her aunt shook her head.

"Not at all a problem. Would you like some breakfast? Caitlyn has blessed us with pancakes this morning," she said, just as Caitlyn had walked into the kitchen.

"No thank you, I ate," she said, slightly nervous. "I'll just…go…see you on Monday."

"If you really have to, okay," said Caitlyn, seemingly relieved. "See you Monday." She saw her out, and both girls let out a sigh of relief once the door was closed.

"So that was why she had problems talking about her parents before…her parents don't live with her. They're most likely deceased," she said to herself as she walked home. It was a bit of a long walk, true, but she had decided that she could use a jog that day. She'd put on sneakers and a loose t-shirt, along with loose khaki shorts. She did look like a boy she supposed, but she was used to that. "But what's she hiding? Why is she so touchy about it? My mother is dead…Senpai doesn't see his mother so she might as well be…the twins have family problems, since they never see their parents…Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai have their own little bundle of issues…and I think Kyouya-Senpai _wishes_ his father was dead. Well…maybe they have different customs in America. But…she doesn't know that we all come from dysfunctional families too."

She shrugged. It was no good fretting about it. She had homework to do. And besides, she had two years plus the remainder of that one to figure out Caitlyn. She wasn't in any hurry…unlike someone else.

* * *

"Why the hell hasn't her information been processed?" he asked the empty room, glaring at the computer. "There are so many damn files on this girl. Why?"

The maids cleaning outside in the hall cringed. They were used to his temper, and had had things thrown at them over the years for disturbing him when he was in this mood, or when waking him up. Nonetheless, his cursing and anger wasn't something pleasant, and they were not enjoying themselves.

He had, as usual, gotten out of the shower and was trying, as usual, to pull up the files on Caitlyn. He was tired of all the questions. He wanted answers, and he wanted them as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the files were taking far longer than he wanted them to. He turned to the laptop and glared at the empty page, then the inner voice of Tamaki sounded in his head.

_Mother should sit down and relax,_ it chimed, exactly as his 'best friend' would have.

Sighing, he sat down on the bed, took his glasses off, and pinched the bridge of his nose. He was getting knots from all this tension and stress. Over a commoner, nonetheless. He groaned and let himself fall backwards onto the bed.

_What's wrong with me? Why am I getting so stressed out over this? As that idiot tells me…stay calm,_ he thought to himself, staring at the ceiling. _I don't like this. There's too much mystery around this girl. The only time I have problems with getting information on people is when they have giant skeletons in other closets. And what could she possibly-_

"_Blip"_ He sat up slowly. A file had come in. He looked at the label. It was the file from the principal himself. He opened it, his pulse slightly accelerated.

_To Whom It May Concern:_

_Miss Kumar is a brilliant student. Despite her reputation to be…rowdy…she is a wonderful student and any school is lucky to have her. However, as you can see in the records of the school therapist, she suffered from a period of suppressed depression after the accident with her parents. She is a special student in more ways than one, and may I warn you that it would be best if you were to keep an eye on her for any signs of this depression. The accident was very messy, and the other files we have sent contain the details. She is fragile, and is to be handled with care. As the principal, I say that she is a wonderful student with a large amount of academic achievements. As a man who loves what he does and the students that make his job possible, I ask you to be kind to her. Thank you._

_Sincerely,_

_Matthew Smithson_

Kyouya read the letter a few times, then shut down the laptop, puzzling over it. It hadn't answered any of his questions. Actually, it had only given him more. Suppressed depression? Accident? _Fragile_? What did it mean? What did any of it mean? Obviously something happened, and her parents were probably dead. But it still left him wondering.

He went to bed that night, no less bemused than he had been before. It seemed that every one of those files was a puzzle piece… and at that moment, none of the ones he had were fitting together.

**(A/N: Caitlyn is developing! Hope you're enjoying the story! The web is going to get more tangled, and this puzzle has more pieces yet. Anyhow, a I said, my internet was messed up, so I couldn't submit. But I have extra chapters b/c I could still write. So I'm submitting two again. Review pls! Reviews make me write faster!)**


	19. Self Defense and Torture

It was Caitlyn's second week at Ouran, and she hadn't seen the host club in a while. The party on Friday had been fun, and Monday had been like any usual day, but Tuesday and Wednesday she had been forced to take her brother to practice and home. The boy on his baseball team that they had arranged for him to go home with was sick, and she didn't want him in the host club, getting any ideas. Thankfully, his friend was in school on Thursday, and she was free to go where she liked after school.

They'd moved at an awkward time, as school was almost over. She'd had a hard time, as she hadn't learned some of the material that some odd the finals were on, but she made it in the end. She was intelligent enough. It was a bit odd that school was over, but she figured that they would meet up over the summer like she had with her friends back home. It wasn't a problem, and she was certainly still going to be friends with Haruhi. She lived within walking distance, if she didn't mind a little exercise. Shed probably take her roller blades out of the closet where they were collecting dust and roll over.

She was also sure that seeing more of Haruhi meant seeing more of the Host Club. She was sure that they would stick to their only girl member like gum to the New York sidewalks. And she didn't mind that. Actually, she had grown fond of the twins. But there was something else she still had yet to find out. Who was the Shadow Lord really? The kind of guy she hated? Or someone like her, who was misunderstood? She bit her lip, thinking, as she walked into class. Summer was going to be long and confusing.

"So you can come to club today?" the twins said mischievously after their last class. She yawned in response. Her insomnia was especially bad the previous night, and she had gotten no sleep at all. She looked at Haruhi.

"Actually, I think they just changed my mind," she said with a mock sigh. The twins, used to her teasing, made faces at her while she and Haruhi chuckled. The twins joined in. They were becoming used to her teasing, knowing that she valued them as friends in the end, even if they were her usual source of amusement when she was bored. It was a taste of their own medicine, and they enjoyed having someone to share in their pointless banter. They slung their arms over her shoulders, and after shrugging a few times, left them there. The twins, pleasantly surprised, left them there.

The four friends walked though the school, making their way slowly to the club. Once there, the twins waltzed away. Haruhi let out a resigned sigh, and went over to her designators herself. Then, a blur stopped her. She turned, and watched as Huny-Senpai flew around the room. Apparently his fans had asked for a demonstration of his martial-arts skills before he left. The whole place was packed. Tomorrow there was going to be a larger party, a huge picnic in a place with enough grass to fit all the girls, the refreshments, and so on. It was suitable for the last day of school. It was going to be something elaborate. After all, nothing in the host club was simple.

Caitlyn watched in slight surprise. She had known that he was far more capable than everyone thought, but she didn't know about this. Kyouya cleared his throat, and she looked at him

"He's a martial arts specialist. His family is known for it. I suppose we didn't mention it. His cousin is as well, but Huny is the true master." He waited for her to freak out, but she simple shrugged, surprising him instead. She then looked at him with a twinkle in her eye. _Here we go._

"So…with all those secret police or whatever, can _you_ defend yourself?" she teased. "Or do your glares usually make people run in fear, so you don't need to?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Can _you_?" he retorted. _This girl is interesting…and irritating._

"Well… I'm very good at human anatomy," she said, an intrepid smile replacing her previous smirk. His nerves jumped at that sentence. It left a lot to the imagination.

"…meaning…?" he said, his eyes still on his laptop. He heard her move then, and watched as she got up, put the book aside, and moved behind him. His pulse accelerated slightly. _What is she doing?_ His thoughts were interrupted, and his heart skipped a beat, as her fingers touched his neck.

"I know all the weak spots," she explained, obviously not realizing that her demonstration was far more intimate than she wanted it to be.

Caitlyn was simply thinking to show him that she didn't have any qualms about pissing him off. He seemed to be arrogant enough to think that she should be scared of him. She simply wanted to show him that she wasn't. She hadn't decided whether he was a jerk or not. He was constantly confusing her, saying one thing and acting a different way. She figured a jerk would be pissed about what she was doing. Kyouya, on the other hand, wasn't thinking about much.

Her arm slid over his shoulder as her left hand, the one without the spike-band, slipped around his throat. In any other circumstance he would kill the person, but he couldn't even move. He realized he had stopped breathing, and his eyes didn't move from the computer screen where he was calculating the price of the next day's picnic. Numbers swirled as his head spun. He cleared his throat.

"For example?" he said, his voice coming out silky and composed. He mentally applauded himself as he struggled to catch his breath without her noticing that he had lost it.

"For example, if I press here, I could knock you out." He remained stock still, the feeling of her hands on his neck scalding itself in his mind for eternity. She moved her hand again, to a different place on his neck. "Pressing here would simply cause extreme pain. Biology and health were my favorite classes, you see. So I remember everything. And it comes in handy in an emergency."

He swallowed, which he knew she noticed as her hand was on his neck. Then, it was gone. He turned around and she was sitting with an English book, about werewolves now that she had finished her series, like nothing had happened. His thudding heart and racing mind told him otherwise, however.

"Then again," she said, a thought growing, "some of the guys here might like that." She looked at him out of the corner of her eye for a reaction. He managed to raise an eyebrow, but she pretended not to see it. The squeals of half the girls in the room then brought it to their attention that every single person in the room was, again, staring at them.

"This is getting old," he said quietly. Caitlyn nodded so only he could see, then stood up to take the heat.

"I was simply explaining the uses of pressure points…in…ah…torture via demonstration," she said calmly, pausing when trying to think of what to say. The few murmurs this explanation caused were quelled by her death glare. Kyouya was busy trying to compose his jumbled-up insides to match his exterior, which looked as normal and cool as it always did. Finally, they all returned to their activities as Caitlyn sat back down and exhaled in relief.

_Yes, torture, _thought Kyouya wryly, staring at her. She turned from her book and gave him a wink. "What guys?"

"Oh, no one," she said, responding with the infuriating answer he had given her previously. He turned back to his computer, annoyed. It was obvious that he wasn't going to get anything but trouble from her.

**(A/N: Well… Caitlyn's a little bold. And oblivious. Well, there's the second chapter. Hope you're enjoying! And review please!)**


	20. Talking to a Twin

"Oh, shut up already," mumbled Caitlyn, annoyed. Haruhi nodded, slightly sympathetic. People were buzzing about her outfit. She'd pulled cut-off gray shorts from somewhere and paired it with lacy tights, along with a black racerback tank-top with a silver hem and straps. Other than that, she had lace gloves, lace choker and bracelet, and a spike band. She had added silver hoops, and her spike-band was actually not sharp, but adorned with silver pyramid-shaped squares that were only semi-painful. It was supposed to be hot, and they would be out late with the party. She figured the last thing she needed was to be on a sunny lawn in her tight jeans. Unfortunately, people were used to her usual jeans and tank-top. This was pretty much as far as she could get from puffy yellow nightmares, and the reactions were appropriate; slack-jawed faces.

Of course, people were also muttering about the party. It was seemingly a big thing. But because of her little 'torture' demonstration, there was talk about many things that day. Unfortunately, this also made a particular student more desperate. Of course, they were all terrified of Kyouya, but Caitlyn was apparently worth it. She'd had already stared him down when he attempted to walk over. She wasn't quite sure of his name… but he wasn't actually that bad looking. But she still would prefer confrontation. And she was getting tired of all the talk.

"You okay, Caitlyn?" asked Kaoru. She recognized his voice, and responded without looking up.

"I suppose…no Hikaru no accompany you?" she asked. Kaoru shrugged, although she didn't see it. She was staring at the blank board in boredom. "You're reasonable without him though, so I think I prefer to speak to you two separately. Hikaru's good for banter and such. You're actually decent by yourself."

"…thanks?" he said, shrugging again. She laughed, surprising him and making Hikaru and Haruhi turn away from their conversation and stare at her.

Caitlyn hardly ever laughed. She usually chuckled, and in a dark manner. Her smirks and cat-like smiles had a suggestion of menace in them always. But none of them had ever heard her laugh outright. She didn't do it often. But perhaps it was because she was fatigued, perhaps it was because the murmurings were giving her a headache and she couldn't catch it. Perhaps she wanted to…but she laughed. An actual laugh.

And it was no less evil than any of her other displays of amusement.

Her laugh…was a cackle. A melodious cackle, yes, but a cackle. It rose in pitch, then went back down the scale, growing into something more like her usual chuckle. Her upper teeth were the only things that showed, reminding Haruhi of a vampire. It settled into an evil chuckle and died out. Hikaru and Kaoru clutched each other in fear and shuddered. Haruhi, on the other hand, was more level headed, and simply titled her head to the side, slightly bemused. She wondered if she had done that on purpose or if it was her actual natural laugh. Caitlyn looked up.

"What?" she asked. The three looked at her.

"You have…an evil witch cackle," said Kaoru, looking at her with wide eyes. She looked at him, then her shoulders slumped a bit, and she sighed.

"So they told me…" she said, with a sardonic expression on her face. "My friends and I used to joke about it. They would joke that I was a witch." There was silence from the three as conversation buzzed around them. They shrugged then, and Hikaru and Haruhi returned to their conversation, leaving Kaoru to deal with her witchyness.

"That's the first time I've heard you laugh," he observed. She shrugged.

"With good reason."

"And the first time in a while I heard Kyouya-Senpai laugh was when you called him Casanova," he said, realizing it. She looked up then, with a raised eyebrow. He began to ramble, letting his thoughts stray. "We call another student Casanova, because his name sounds like it."

"Kyouya doesn't laugh often?" she asked. _Well, I suppose it makes sense, with him always being so collected and so on…_

"Not really…how come you don't say Senpai?" he asked. She glared at him behind her glasses. He kept changing the subject.

"I'm not used to calling people by titles when they're only one or two years older than me. We don't do that in America," she said, giving up. He nodded and sat down next to her.

"So what was it like in America?" he asked excitedly. "How were the New York fashion lines?" She looked at him surprised, then laughed.

"Of course you would ask…I don't know. I didn't really think about that or look at it," she said. "But they always did a cover of fashion week in Metro. Although some of the designs were nice, a few things I couldn't even imagine wearing. But I think that my aunt might have a few magazines if you want." His face lit up, and she smirked. Her mind wandered to her place of birth. Memories came back.

"But the skyline…it could take your breath away… and the view from our fair lady, the Statue of Liberty…and the twin towers were gorgeous while they stood. There are some things I miss…" She paused, thinking, as Kaoru waited for her to go on. "But I don't miss the pollution. It always got me that they were killing the deciduous forest around them. The estuary was long gone," she said finally. It was Kaoru's turn to laugh.

"It's the same here. Buildings, trash, pollution," he pointed out. She shrugged again.

"True…you know, I miss Central Park I think the most. There was this really cool spot I used to go to by 50th street or so…you had to hop the fence…and I used to sit on a rock jutting off of the water and just watch the ducks and the turtles and stuff. It was pretty cool. There were all these little places that I loved, little nooks and crannies of the city that hardly anyone knew about. Where it was just me and New York…where I could get away from the stuff at home-" she stopped short, and bit her lip. _Crap, shouldn't have said that._

"Hello class," said the teacher walking in. "Sorry I'm late."

_I have never been so happy to see a teacher,_ she thought, relieved, as everyone sat down. She didn't catch the thoughtful look that Kaoru gave her before he too sat down in his seat.

**(A/N: I no, this is a little short. Sry, I was hoping to get the whole day done in one really long entry, but then I had the idea to show she wasn't too stupid when it comes to people like she is with Kyouya by knowing the difference between the twins and how they were different. And then I threw in a little hint about her parents. Hope you don't mind…but the party's coming up. )**


	21. Sketchy Personalities

Caitlyn looked around the party. It was a huge hit, and the lawn was packed with giggling girls and their hosts. She looked over to the Shadow-King, who was sitting not too far away. The hosts had changed for the party. It was too hot to wear those suit uniforms in a field with hardly any shade cover. Kyouya was in a sleeveless black shirt and jeans, and Caitlyn couldn't help but think that black looked good on him…she shook the thought out of her head before it developed into something. She was beginning to hope that he wasn't a jerk.

"What a waste that would be….he's hot," she said quietly, chuckling to herself. She'd admit that…but nothing else.

Kyouya didn't know whether to be happy or not. Apparently, their graduation had drawn more people to the club. He wasn't sure whether to be happy that profits were much higher than expected, or annoyed that they only appreciated his friends now when they were almost gone. He looked up from his laptop to where Caitlyn sat two feet away. He then noticed that she was writing something, and not reading. He was sitting in the shade of a large tree at the edge of the large lawn because his pale skin was easily burned. No chance of that for Caitlyn though, as she had removed her leggings a while ago. Apparently, they were really just long socks, and she was able to take them off easily. With leggings and gloves removed, she had lain down on her stomach in the sun with what he had assumed was her book and presumably read.

He was alternating in between hosting and sitting. He had walked around making last minute sells, making small talk, and going back to sit before he burnt. But it was a very hot day, and he preferred to sit. He had almost run out of things to sell anyway. It was already past six.

"What are you doing?" he asked. She looked up from the spiral bound book lying in the grass and flipped her pencil across her fingers.

"Sketching," she said. He was surprised when he sensed no enmity in her voice. She stared down at her sketchbook, biting her lip. She put the pencil down and erased something, then began sketching again.

"Can I see?" he ventured. She pursed her lips thoughtfully, the shrugged and sat up. She reached over and handed it to him. He looked down at the picture, and started. It was…him. He was about to turn the page, then looked up. "May I?" She nodded.

"This is…Tamaki," he observed, flipping back. He had a goofy smile on his face, but his eyes were deep and understanding. He noticed he was the last person she had drawn. He flipped again, and saw Huny, smiling in a wise sort of way that he wouldn't have drawn him with. Then Mori, with a stoic face hiding a kind look in his eyes. Then…one of the twins.

"I suppose you want to know why I drew the twins separately," she said. She had moved, and was looking over his shoulder. The twin there had a dark and irate but sad look on his face. He looked at the way the hair was parted. It was Hikaru. He turned the page again, and there was Kaoru. He had a different expression; a gentle smile. He looked as if he was going to ask if you were alright, which Kyouya found interesting.

"They're different people. When they're together, they're both playful and they like to trick people. It's a gentle mischievousness. But when they're apart, Kaoru is more caring. And Hikaru is quieter and a bit dark. He lets his temper get a hold of him, and his brother is always there to calm him. So I drew them how I see them. Mori is quiet, but he's kind. And Huny, although he acts like a kid, is actually smart and pretty experienced. And Tamaki, although he acts stupid, can see through people. Haruhi helped me see that. She sorta felt bad that I was so scornful of him I guess…" she trailed off, thinking. _If Tamaki can see though people…and Kyouya is his best friend…then he can't be a jerk, can he?_

He turned again, and saw Haruhi with a smile and those chocolate brown eyes that could stare into your soul. He turned back to his face, and he noticed that you couldn't read it. He was completely expressionless. He stared at the portrait for a moment.

_And me?_ he wondered. She looked at him carefully, trying to discern his expression. She had drawn him without any expression because she hadn't made a decision about him yet. But he kept quiet, to her slight relief. He handed her to sketchbook, and she sat down and turned the page, starting another picture. He watched her carefully.

_So she doesn't know what to make of me yet,_ he thought.

Just then, there was a cry. They looked over and saw Kaoru lying on the grass, moaning. Hikaru rushed over.

"Kaoru!" he cried in anguish. Caitlyn looked across the field. Haruhi was watching the twins with a bored look.

"That's what you get for running away when I try to kiss you," said Hikaru. About a hundred fan girls swooned.

"Hikaru…it hurts…" Hikaru slipped his hand under Kaoru's head, and looked into his eyes.

"Well next time you should let me," he said in a low voice. Haruhi rolled her eyes and looked away, and Caitlyn followed suit.

"Although, they both enjoy that twincest act, and I'm not sure what to say to that," she amended with a wry smile. Kyouya smirked in agreement.

* * *

Haruhi looked out across the field. It wasn't as bad as she'd thought it would be. There wasn't really any garbage except for a few napkins. The only people left were the hosts and a few straggling girls. The field was dark now, and the only reason she could see Kyouya under his tree was because of the glow of his computer screen. There was a shadow sitting next to him which she assumed was Caitlyn. She watched as two more girls left, leaving only…she counted seven. She checked her watch; it was already nine fifteen. All of her customers had left, so she figured it was time to go home. She made her way over to Caitlyn and Kyouya.

"But you should tell them now," came Caitlyn's voice.

"Perhaps…" responded Kyouya thoughtfully. Haruhi wondered what they were talking about when Caitlyn noticed her.

"Hi Haruhi," said Caitlyn. She cleared her throat.

"Hi. You ready to leave?" she asked. Caitlyn looked up. She was lying in the grass facing the Shadow King, and she had a sketchbook open.

"Sure…how are we getting home anyway? I don't know how to get home from here," she said thoughtfully. Haruhi shrugged.

"Senpai offered to drive me home. I don't think he'll mind taking you too," she said. Caitlyn raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not sure I want to be in a limo with you two lovebirds. I might be permanently scarred for life," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Haruhi glared at her, blushing slightly. She was about to respond when the other hosts walked up. Kyouya cleared his throat, catching the attention of the club.

"Caitlyn suggested-"

"I said you guys should have another party, with just the host club for Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai, without all the shallow girls screaming around you. You could go to the beach or something and just hang out. I mean, you'll probably do it anyway…even if it's not a planned party, but I said it's in order since you've known each other for so long," she said, interrupting Kyouya. Kyouya adjusted his glasses and glared at her.

"The beach would be nice, right Takashi?" asked Huny excitedly. "We could have cake there."

"…yes."

"We already did this. It didn't end so well," pointed out Haruhi. Tamaki gave her a dazzling smile.

"I'll always be there to catch you," he said. Haruhi rolled her eyes in response.

"Yes, let's go to the beach," said the twins mischievously. Caitlyn looked at them, not even wanting to know why they were so happy about it. Kyouya shrugged.

"It looks like its in majority," he said.

"Wonderful, you guys can have fun," she said dryly. "But could someone either tell me how to get home from here or give me a drive?" The twins' arms shot around her, and she groaned. She let her head drop, then turned it to look at Kaoru, then Hikaru.

"Beggars can't be choosers I guess," she muttered resignedly. The twins laughed evilly, making her sigh and her shoulders slump.

"And you're coming to the beach with us too, right?" they chimed.

"Cait-chan can come!" announced Huny. Tamaki looked up, his face displaying a drop of fear.

"Uh…maybe?" she said. The twins dragged her off backwards to their limo then, and she looked back with 'help me' written all over her face.

"What did I agree to?" she moaned.

**A/N: Yes, I know I said I wouldn't finish this story because I didn't like it. But I have the rest of it sitting here on my computer, bothering me and taking up space, so I decided what the hell. (To those of you who didn't get the memo I put in Meant to Be, which has been taking up most of my time so far, sorry! I know it's been a year... T.T) So the rest will be coming when I get a chance to update. :-) The only reason I'm finishing it is because you all liked it so much. XD So R&R please! **


	22. Cling and Cleanse

Caitlyn sat in uncomfortable silence. Hikaru had his headphones on with his eyes closed, and she had the feeling that he was asleep. They'd obviously bothered her the first few minutes. She'd ignored them and Hikaru had gotten bored. So now she sat in an uncomfortable silence with Kaoru.

"…thanks for taking me home," she said reluctantly. She wasn't really thankful, as she preferred to anywhere else in that moment, but the silence was stifling. She felt as if she would drown in it if she sat there for another moment.

She hated silence. Silence gave her nothing to think about. It made her restless, made her toss and turn at night, made her pace. But she was in a moving vehicle, and couldn't pace. And that meant she'd have to occupy herself with thoughts. Thoughts always led to the memories…she pushed them away and looked to the younger twin. She was glad when he responded. Kaoru turned from the window and gave her a smile, although she had the impression that it was forced.

"No problem," he said.

"Does he space out often?" she asked, jerking her head towards Hikaru.

"Space out?" asked Kaoru, slightly confused. She supposed it was a solely English saying…

"Daydream, not pay attention, go off into his own little world…" She trailed off and Kaoru smiled again, this time for real. Although it was slightly melancholy.

"Sometimes, yeah… what's that?" he asked, pointing to her sketchbook. She shrugged and opened it to the picture of his brother. He took it and ran his fingers over the paper with a thoughtful look on his face. "Hikaru…why'd you draw us apart?" He looked up at her with questioning eyes.

"Kyouya asked the same thing…" She stared at Hikaru with a thoughtful look on her face. "You're just different people is all. He's more…intense I think is the word. He doesn't know how to express himself really, and so it sorta stays bottled up. He's more dark and temperamental, even though he's the older twin. You're more levelheaded and stuff…turn the page." He did so, and looked at himself. He didn't speak for a moment, staring at the paper.

"So you this is how you see us?" he asked finally, turning again to see Haruhi. He looked at her picture, his face unreadable. She nodded, knowing full well he wasn't looking at her. The silence crept in, and she looked for something to say…

"You both liked her," she said quietly. She'd grabbed at the first train of thought, and she wondered if she should have said it. Kaoru looked up, his eyes wide and probing. She shrugged, and he turned back to the picture.

"It wasn't that simple…" he said, looking at his brother. Something in his eyes struck Caitlyn as odd.

"The twincest act isn't an act, is it?" she asked without thinking. She bit her lip. This was why she hated silence. She looked at him, but he looked away.

"Sometimes…sometimes it isn't," he said. He looked out the window, seemingly forgetting she was there. "Before her, it was always us. And then it was her _and_ us…and it didn't feel right to me…" He paused in his rambling. "I'm not sure when I began to feel annoyed that not only that he was with her, but that _she_ was with _him_ too…but then there was something between us, because we both liked her. I liked her but I sorta hated her for that, I guess. And that space between us had never been there before. And then we even got into a fight…that was the worst time of my life, I swear. But…-"

"But you don't know if he's going to…want to…go back to how it was?" she ventured. He looked back, and she decided she had been right in thinking that he'd forgotten she was there. She was guessing as much as anything else, and was slightly surprised when he shrugged and nodded. He then looked away.

"I shouldn't have said anything. Just…don't say anything to him, okay?"

"I won't," she promised. She paused. "But…it seems like he loves you as much as you love him…" He looked up at her; his hazel eyes making her feel uncomfortable.

"I'm sure it'll work out," she finished awkwardly. He shrugged as the car slowed, and she climbed out. She looked back in the window, and gave him a melancholy smile. He waved, and the car drove away.

Kaoru stared at Hikaru the whole way. After debating it, he put a hand on his shoulder to wake him up.

"What're you, unconscious?" he joked halfheartedly. Hikaru's eyes flew open, and he stared into his brother's eyes. They looked at each other, and Kaoru thought he saw something in his brother's face, but it disappeared. The door opened and Kaoru walked after his brother in thought. Once in their room, Hikaru did something unexpected. He grabbed Kaoru by the hand and pulled him to him, holding his face so that he was forced to look into his eyes. Kaoru's eyes widened.

"Nothing changes _us_," he whispered fiercely. Kaoru's heart pounded in his chest, and he looked up at him.

"You h-"

"We will always have each other. And next time tell _me_ if you feel like that," he continued in the same fierce whisper, cutting him off. Kaoru stared at him, his eyes still wide. He then let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, and pulled Hikaru closer still, resting his head on his shoulder and closing his eyes. They stood like that for a long time, as it began to rain. The drops poured down into the window panes, washing away Kaoru's doubts and fears…washing away the pain.

* * *

Haruhi smiled and waved at the limo from her door as it left, touching her cheek absently. She could still feel his lips there…

She closed the door, smiling. It was drizzling, but it wasn't a thunderstorm. She was sort of glad school was over. She was studious, but she liked to get a break. She enjoyed having nothing to do, not having to worry about everything and everyone. She had hoped last summer that they would leave her be, but of course that didn't happen. She shrugged and sat down, thinking.

She was dating Tamaki…it hadn't quite set in yet. Of course, she loved him. It was obvious, for all the reasons she told him. And now that she thought about it, as she thought about that day when she'd found out about the rest of them, she realized it had been obvious. How she hadn't seen it…that she didn't know.

Kyouya was always watching her. And there was that incident at the beach…before Tamaki walked in. Now that was truly something to remember. She smiled, thinking of what the host king's reaction would be if he knew what had happened. He was the one who kept the Host Club from falling apart, she knew. She bit her lip, thinking. She knew that there would be no host club in her last year at Ouran. The twins were too mischievous to do Kyouya's job. If the host club were to still exist, _she_ would have to take charge, and although she didn't quit the club because she'd told Tamaki she loved it on the bridge and she'd realized that was one of the reasons he'd decided to stay, she didn't love it enough to maintain it.

Kaoru and Hikaru had always clung to her, and been suggestive. Of course, it could be attributed to their usual tricks, but she'd always been able to read them better than others could. Hikaru had been so jealous of Arai-Kun too…she'd actually suspected him a little. But she hadn't thought about it. Truthfully, the twins were close friends, despite how much they annoyed her. She couldn't bear to think of them separated because of her. Their jealousy alone would be enough to drive her crazy. Of course, Tamaki got jealous too, but he was an idiot and it wasn't as chaotic as two trickster twins.

She wondered if the Host Club would fall apart the next year. She knew it wouldn't feel right without Huny and Mori there to lend wisdom and a helping hand. She tried to imagine the club without Huny bouncing over and offering her cake, and Mori there to save her from a death hug or ruffle her hair, and failed. She failed miserably.

"I think everyone is going to miss them," she said to herself with a sigh. As she lay in bed, she found herself slightly glad that the host club wouldn't leave her alone over the summer. She knew she wasn't going to be seeing the two seniors much afterwards.

**(A/N: I felt like I was neglecting the twins, so I put in a little scene with them. I always thought their relationship was so complicated…so I put that little tidbit in. It's how I've always seen them…but I hope you liked my take on it. I know I updated quickly, but I figured that after all that neglect u guys deserved it. ******** Review pls!)**


	23. Blistering Banter

Haruhi watched as her bag was taken away by some of the help. She couldn't help but feel like this whole trip was a disaster waiting to happen. It was the same exact place they'd been last time, where she'd fallen. She had a strong feeling of dread. There was just something about it…of course Kyoya had told her not to worry and that this was the best private beach he had, unless of course she had somehow gotten a passport…

So she'd shut up and been happy that he wasn't finding some way to get her back into debt. But as she looked out across the beautiful beach, she felt no elation to be on vacation. She felt anxiety and a sickening feeling upon realizing that she'd be spending two nights with the host club at a private beach of the Shadow Lord's.

"Rich bastard," muttered Caitlyn, mirroring Haruhi's thoughts. Haruhi nodded in agreement. She sighed then, remembering that the twins had somehow gotten her into a bathing suit that looked just like the one they'd forced her into last time. They'd kidnapped her as she was attempting to lock her door, and made her change. She was just glad they didn't change her themselves. She was then nearly knocked over and smothered.

"Haruhi! Did those horrible clones forcibly make you change? Did they harm you?" cried the blond host king, all ready to swim. Haruhi rolled her eyes and pushed him off. He sulked as Huny and Mori bounced over, they too in swimming attire. Well, one bounced and the other strode. Huny had a rabbit printed flotation device of some sort around his waist. She had a flashback of how he'd gotten lost and they'd had to find him, and she wondered if he really did know how to swim and was faking it.

"…deep," she muttered, remembering Renge.

"Cait-chan, you came!" said Huny, interrupting her thoughts. The two girls looked down at the oldest host member and his beaming smile. Caitlyn shrugged, then turned, her dark eyes searching the beach she then found what she was looking for, and glared at a glasses-donned face slightly far off and coming closer.

"Yeah," she said, still glaring at Kyoya. "_Someone_ saw to it that I was kidnapped." The Shadow Lord adjusted his glasses but remained silent, still leisurely making his way over to the other hosts.

"Hi Mori-Senpai," Caitlyn said, looking at him. Haruhi watched as he turned from his view of the horizon and looked at her thoughtfully. Haruhi wondered if he was actually going to respond, but then he gave her a small smile.

"…hi," he acknowledged. Caitlyn smiled back brightly in spite of the approaching dark figure. Kyoya had reached the hosts and Caitlyn noted that his brown leather notebook was in his hand. He was wearing swim trunks like the other hosts, but he still retained a buttoned sleeveless shirt. He smirked, and Caitlyn stiffened, preparing for their usual battle of words. Haruhi had thought that he wasn't usually the instigator, but she figured that vacation was as good a time for him to start as any.

"What, no eyeliner? No pointed and buckled jewelry? No leather boots?" he criticized, still managing to sound eloquent. Haruhi and the other hosts looked at the usually black-donned girl, noting her flip-flops, pony-tailed hair, and make-up-less face. She still had her sunglasses though. Caitlyn held up her hand.

"No, but my nail-polish is still intact," she said, sarcasm evident. "Of course, my appearance has nothing to do with the fact that metal and leather aren't exactly what buoyancy devices are made of, and that make-up comes off in water. Well, there are brands that cost much more that are water-proof, but I'm not rich like some people and I'd rather not lather _extra_ chemicals on my face just to have it be washed off. Running make-up makes girls unbecoming, and that's exactly the opposite of the purpose of make-up. But, you wouldn't know that." Haruhi looked at Caitlyn's black shorts, black t-shirt, black flip-flops, and black beach bag, and decided that she had followed her usual style as much as possible while still staying practical for the beach. The twins then grabbed her and yanked her backwards, dragging her across the sand.

"Haruhi, let's play!" they cried. Tamaki ran after them, screaming for them to leave her alone. She watched as Mori and Huny went off to look for shells, and wished she could go with them instead. She saw that Caitlyn had left with Kyoya then, and felt slightly sorry for them. It didn't look like they'd be relaxing if they stayed together.

Kyoya watched Caitlyn carefully, but she didn't even bother to spare him a look. She'd been leaning towards misunderstood, but that comment had evened the scales back so it was level with jerk. She walked down the beach a bit, stopping under a large umbrella to pull one of two chairs into the sun. She then pulled out a black towel with a skull and crossbones on it…

_Typical_, thought Kyoya.

…and put her bag down next to it. She then yanked off her t-shirt, showing a tankini top and stuffed the shirt into her bag. She lay down on her back and pulled out a book to read.

_Not the sketchbook, _he noted.

He sat down in the chair still under the umbrella and picked up his laptop from the table there, and opened it. Caitlyn looked up to the sound of his typing, and then put her fingers to her temples. She shook her head, not realizing he was staring at her out of the corner of his eye. He picked up his umbrella-donned drink, pretending oblivion to her actions.

"Kyoya, what could you possibly be doing at a beach, in the summer, on vacation, on a weekend, on a Friday," she said, emphasizing more and increasing in volume as she continued, "with that god-damned laptop of yours?" Her eyebrows were creased and raised, and a small smile donned her lips. He decided that she looked better like this, completely natural and leather free, simply sitting with an exasperated smile on a beach. She certainly looked more relaxed, and he found it amusing that she was trying to be nice to him…in a nagging sisterly sort of way.

"Don't you ever relax?" she asked. He finally turned to her, an eyebrow raised.

"Define relax," he said, his amusement apparent in his voice.

"I don't know," she said, shrugging and looking out at the ocean. Her face brightened. "Go swim!" She motioned to the large, sparkling, blue expanse in front of them. A yawn overtook her, and she covered her mouth. He chuckled in response and took another sip of his drink, thinking. A valid excuse came to him.

"My delicate complexion is prone to sunburn," he said. "I'd prefer to stay here." He leaned back with his laptop, setting his eyes on the screen. He then looked up again at a rustling sound. He caught the object thrown at him, but after a glance threw it back, a smirk on his face.

"Suntan lotion? It'll wash off."

"It's waterproof," countered Caitlyn. He shot her a look, then smirked.

"Why should I go through the trouble of lathering myself with chemicals so that I may jump into dangerous salt-filled water only to have to go and indulge in a long shower to get the grime of the water, the chemicals of the lotion, and the sweat from the exertion of swimming off?" he asked, throwing some of her words back at her. She sighed and dropped the lotion back in her bag.

"You. Are. Impossible," she stated simply, biting off each word for emphasis. She pulled off her sunglasses and pulled out black tinted goggles, putting them on in their place. She swung her legs over the side of her seat and slipped off her flip-flops, leaving them there.

"Suit yourself," she said, starting down towards the water. He had an idea then, and a particularly evil smirk broke across his face as he watched her retreating figure.

"Wait."

"Yes?" she said, turning slightly to look at him. Upon seeing his grin, her eyebrow raised.

"I'll go," he said, putting his drink down. A corner of her mouth began to turn up. "If," she turned again and began walking, "you put the lotion on me." She froze.

"Say _what_?" she cried in English. He chuckled, understanding that she must've said something to the extent of 'what the hell'. She began to walk again.

"In your dreams," she called over her shoulder so that he could understand her clearly. He continued to chuckle and turned back to his laptop.

Haruhi looked up at Caitlyn. Haruhi was bent over, in the middle of removing her shorts to expose her bathing suit. She knew that Tamaki would have a fit about her 'showing skin' but she wanted to take a dip, as it was unbearably hot. She had on a girly one-piece nearly identical to the one the twins had forced on her before, minus the cap. It was also a halter. Caitlyn smirked.

"The twins' work I'm assuming?" she said. Haruhi rolled her eyes, then looked around quickly, remembering that this was the twins' design, and not their mother's. "Don't worry, they're running from the blond idiot. He was yelling something about the 'innocence of my daughter', and they called back that fathers don't 'kiss their daughters' like he kissed you…" She ignored Haruhi's blush and began to walk into the water.

"You're still wearing shorts," called Haruhi, looking at Caitlyn's swimming attire with slight envy, wishing she wasn't in the pink getup. Caitlyn turned back, a puzzled expression on her face.

"Huh?' she asked, looking down. "Oh not, these are like swim trunks, but for girls." She looked at Haruhi, then chuckled at her expression. "Hey, at least they didn't force you into a bikini." Haruhi shuddered and followed Caitlyn into the water without another word. The taller girl laughed.

The two girls had been swimming for a few minutes when a splash interrupted their relaxing dip. The splash was followed by two more, and the girls looked at each other, not even bothering to look before knowing who it was. It was obvious that their quiet swim was over. Haruhi closed her eyes and waited for impact. She didn't have to wait long.

"Haruhi!" cried Tamaki, grabbing her. The twins appeared in front.

"How're you liking the bathing suit, Haruhi?" asked Hikaru. Haruhi made a face.

"I want mine back," she said dryly.

"But that one was ugly," said Kaoru defensively. She then remembered that the suit was designed by them.

"But this one's okay I guess," she lied quickly. The twins brightened, and Caitlyn rolled her eyes so only Haruhi could see. The female host nodded. Tamaki tightened his grip.

"Stop torturing my darling," he said. He looked down at Haruhi, and she recognized the same reaction that he'd had when he first saw her in a swim-suit. This time, however, his following reaction was totally different. He pulled her into a host position, some sort of dip with his wet hair dripping over face as his amethyst eeyes stared deeply into hers. "But you look adorable in this suit."

"Senpai, get off me," she said, hiding her blush. Caitlyn caught her tone though, and spoke up to save the other girl.

"So, what happened last time that was so bad?" she asked. Haruhi looked up, her face a mix of embarrassment and secrecy and slight anger remembered. Tamaki had a similar expression, but the twins simply looked slightly annoyed.

"We'll show you," said the twins. Caitlyn looked bemused, but swam after them towards the shore.

**(A/N: Hope you like the trip to the beach. Sorry it took so long to update. I have a ton of work to do... also, I need more ideas for meant to be if anyone has any. Just drop me a line in the commreviews for it. Or this one too, but the other one more so cause i have writers block... andways, reviews! Please! And I need some sort of disaster. Who should get hurt and how? Thanks for reading!)**


	24. Slipping Steps

The five dripping students walked up the beach. Caitlyn was a little puzzled, but she followed silently. She looked up at the large rock formation they stopped at, and then followed them up a steep and precarious path to the top. They all stood looking over the ocean. Everyone looked at Haruhi, but she remained silent, still staring down at the water. Then the others hosts appeared.

"What're you doing up here?" asked Kyoya. No one spoke, still staring at Haruhi and he raised en eyebrow. Caitlyn turned then.

"I wanted to know what happened here last time that had Haruhi dubious about coming back. The twins took me here, but no one's saying anything," she said. Haruhi looked up, her face anxious.

"I'm still dubious. I've had a bad feeling all day," she said. Caitlyn shook her head, and the hosts turned to her.

"Girl's intuition should not be ignored," she said. Hikaru scoffed.

"We're fine," he said. And besides, there's no one here to push her off the cliff," he said.

"Someone'd have to fall off on purpose," agreed Kaoru, but he was looking at Haruhi. Caitlyn's eyebrows creased.

"You just got over a broken arm, so you shouldn't be talking," pointed out Haruhi. Both twins winced, remembering the pain. Only Hikaru had broken his arm, but Kaoru had felt some of it too, being his twin.

"Broken arm? Push her off?" she asked, getting an uneasy feeling. Perhaps Haruhi was rubbing off on her, or perhaps it was the expressions that she saw from the hosts. Finally, one of the two expressionless faces opened its mouth.

"The broken arm has nothing to do with this. And it's Haruhi's story really," said Kyoya. Haruhi rolled her eyes at the looks everyone gave her, then began to speak at last.

"I was down there," she said, pointing to a spot on the shore. Everyone looked down. "with a bucket of shells I had collected with Huny-Senpai and Mori-Senpai." She looked out across the ocean again, and all the hosts seemed to be remembering. Caitlyn's uneasy feeling grew a bit.

"We'd come as the host club, and it was a beautiful day. I was looking out at the ocean when I heard some girls calling my name. I looked up, and two designators were standing up here. I told them it was dangerous, but they said the view was nice. They asked me to go up, but I said no. Just then, two guys appeared and began to harass them. I went up to help. When I got there, I threw the shells at him.

"I told him to leave them alone, but they weren't in the mood to listen. One grabbed me by the collar and began to walk forward, pushing me closer and closer towards the edge. The last thing I saw was the hosts appearing behind him before he told me to bathe in the sea. He let me go over the edge. I saw Tamaki above me, and then I blacked out."

Caitlyn noticed she hadn't used an honorific, and then wondered what had happened. Haruhi looked up, breaking out of her trance. She turned to the host king, obviously expecting him to continue. He didn't take his eyes off her, but began to speak.

"I yelled your name as I jumped over the ledge after you. I saw you disappear under the water, and I took a breath before going under myself. I opened my eyes, trying to see you, but I couldn't see anything. I remember being scared, but not for myself. I was scared because I couldn't see you, didn't know if you were okay. And I remember the pain from the saltwater in my eyes. And then I made out a shape, and I remember feeling relief as I got you. I pulled you up to the surface then swam to shore. I carried you in my arms, and Kyoya covered you with a shirt or something. I don't remember. I'm not sure when you woke up either. But you were awake when I set you down." He stopped, and Caitlyn got the feeling that there was a lot more that people weren't saying. But she remained silent and looked around, her eyes resting on Kyoya. He too was looking at Haruhi. She could read his eyes for a second, before he looked at her. And what she read there tilted the scales back away from jerk again. She'd read remembered anger, and worry, and…could it be? Perhaps a drop of love. She wondered then if there was someone who didn't love Haruhi in the host club. Even the seniors could be accused of liking the female host. His eyes searched hers, looking for something. She wasn't sure what he wanted to find.

He was looking for some sign of hope. Something that could tell him that he had a chance with her yet. That perhaps he could win against his father. But her eyes, although deep and dark as his, didn't express anything but an unasked question. He realized that she had read his eyes though, and adjusted his glasses to glare. She smiled slightly, knowing why he'd done it. He cleared his throat.

"We should go in," he said. Everyone looked at him, and he tried to keep his slate-colored eyes from meeting another pair.

"Yeah, we're starved," agreed the twins, a bit too cheerily. They were the first on the path, pushing and shoving, joking. It was obvious to everyone that it was forced, as the only people watching knew the twins well enough. They were followed by Kyoya, Caitlyn, Mori, Huny, and Haruhi and Tamaki in the back. But their forced joking was better than silence. At least, that was what the hosts thought…until someone slipped. The path was steep, and no one had thought to tell them to be careful and not joke. Three voices, the only ones who could recognize the twin, called out a name. One person skidded down the path faster than the others. Other fast steps followed, and the three who knew the twin knelt around him. With everyone else crowded around.

_NO…why'd he have to slip?_ One twin knelt over his look-alike.

_Silence…why do I hate it?_

_I knew we shouldn't have come._

_No, it's not his fault. But why'd I have to push him that hard?_ One twin let his head fall over his brothers, grasping his head in his hands. _Why?_

**(A/N: Don't worry too much. I take character death very seriously, and if someone dies it's a story on its own, not a sub-plot. But comas or paralyzed characters…hmm… XD Well give me reviews on what you think'll happen. Who's hurt? And how? And what'll the unhurt twin do? If I get a really good idea, maybe I'll change it to what you want. Review please!)**


	25. Apathy and Apologies

"Hikaru?" asked the fallen twin, eyes fluttering open. Hikaru's head snapped up, and hazel eyes met. He swept his brother into a tight embrace, then quickly moved him into a gentler position when he exclaimed in pain.

"Kaoru? Kaoru, where does it hurt?" he cried in a low voice. Kyoya briefly had the thought that designators would kill for this, then shook the thought out of his head. His hand strayed to his pocket, ready to whip out his cell-phone if it was more than a scrape.

"My ankle," he said, wincing a bit.

"Can you move it?" interrupted Caitlyn before they moved into a twincest scene. Kaoru didn't take his eyes off of his brother, but was able to move his foot, then cried out as a lance of pain shot up his leg. "Well, it's not broken if you can move it. You probably just twisted it really bad, and you've got a few cuts." Kyoya took out his cell-phone, demanding people to take him back up to the building they'd be staying in, and a doctor to attend to Kaoru's ankle.

Caitlyn looked up at the host's faces. And she was surprised. Not because they were expressionless and uncaring, but because they all displayed a hint of worry. Even a usually stoic face belonging to a tall college-bound host, and a usually well masked glasses-donned one. Hikaru and Kaoru were still cooing to each other, Hikaru obviously more distressed than his twin, despite the fact that Kaoru was the one who was injured.

Haruhi remembered last vacation, when Kaoru had cut his cheek saving her from a falling vase. She'd thought that they'd been overreacting then. This was a million times worse, and despite her worry for the younger twin she was getting sickened by it a bit. She had nothing against the cooing, but it was the fact that hands had gotten involved. She cleared her throat, and they stopped and settled for Hikaru clutching his brother to his chest.

"I knew we shouldn't have come here," she said quietly. Caitlyn nodded.

"Girls' intuition," she said. She looked at the twins. "And karma too."

"Kao-chan, you're going to be okay," said Huny, leaning in. Kaoru smiled weakly.

"It's fine. It's just a sprain, right?" he said, his smile strengthening. He turned to his twin. "I'm okay Hikaru."

A few people appeared in the distance and rapidly approached. They lifted Kaoru on a stretcher, with Hikaru holding his hand as if to let go would kill one of the two. They ran off towards the building where the circle of friends was residing for the three-day vacation. The rest of the club and Caitlyn followed a little slower, watching the figures in the distance.

"We have the best medical care here, as my family is in the medical business," said Kyoya to the host club. His words did not dispel any worry though.

"Tell that to Hikaru," someone muttered. Who, he couldn't tell. But it didn't matter, because they all were thinking it.

* * *

Kyoya looked at the talking and laughing hosts, especially a certain red-head. He was in slight disbelief. He'd assumed that Haruhi was simply trying to make up an excuse so she wouldn't be forced to spend the weekend with the club. He was more than aware of how she felt about the Host Club, and he wasn't sure why she hadn't left. Kyoya had spent much of his free time trying to think of more ways to increase her debt without making it too noticeable that he was doing so. But he'd flushed all his mastermind plans down the drain and decided to let her go. He'd watched the world that he'd come to know fall apart little by little. His whole entire life had been about the power and the money that he could gain if he just pushed a little harder…but not too hard. Then Tamaki, the idiot, had come into his life and shattered every single unconsciously formed barrier that he'd ever made, and when all the mirror shards and smoke had cleared, he'd left him with the truth. He'd helped him build a new life around that truth, with the blond idiot somehow becoming tightly encompassed in it. Tamaki was less of an idiot than he'd thought, Kyoya had realized back then. His opinion hadn't changed, but he still treated him as if he didn't know.

But Tamaki had decided to leave, and take half of his world with him. Watching his world crumble, he'd decided to let them all go, before they broke off more trying to escape. He thought he was strong enough to get by without them. Thankfully, everything was almost back to normal. Although life without the two seniors would be…different. And there was a new element that he had to think about, a new task set by his father. He looked across the layout of food, and a pair of equally dark eyes met his.

Caitlyn sat across from him at the end of the table. Next to her sat Haruhi, next to him Tamaki. She had made up her mind, her preconceived notions of cold-heartedness and greed gone with Kaoru's ability to say he'd never sprained an ankle. Someone who cared for nothing but material gain would not have been so stricken by Kaoru's fall. There was no business to be hurt at the moment, and a fall like that couldn't have killed him. So he'd been stricken for another reason. Because he cared. Which meant that he wasn't the jerk that she'd originally thought. He was just…misunderstood. He had shells, like her. And she was glad…though she wouldn't tell _him_ that.

A small smile appeared; an involuntary action from her train of thought. She watched as surprise flickered, and he raised an eyebrow, an unspoken question. Her sincere smile became wry, as she was now aware that he was simply being difficult. He smirked back, obviously purposely trying to irk her, but she didn't take the bait. She rolled her eyes in response and turned back to her food. Inwardly, she was laughing. At first their arguments had made her angry, but now it just felt like another round of banter with the twins. She was glad, she thought. She looked to the brown-eyed girl next to her, to ask her to pass the salt, then decided against it when she saw her.

* * *

Haruhi and Tamaki were still thinking of the incident that had occurred last time the host club had visited that particular beach. Of course, they were still taking part in the conversation that the twins were dominating, as Tamaki had to retaliate to their comments and Haruhi was not allowed to remain silent. But every so often, an eye or a thought would stray.

She still did not know if it had been fear or something else that had made her call him back. It was most likely a mix of both, but she still wasn't sure when her feelings for him had developed. But it had felt good to have a shoulder to lean on…someone to hold her…someone she could count on when her level headedness dissipated with the silence when thunder struck. Even if that someone was a blond idiot. But he was her blond idiot. She looked up, and their eyes met.

Unspoken words crossed their thoughts. The things that had never been said. The things that were better left unsaid. And the things that should have been said, the things that were still waiting, stuck in their throats. And there were the words that didn't need to be said, because they were already known. The 'I love you's, the 'thank you's, the 'I'll always be there's. Things that go without saying are often said in the end. And they wanted to say them then. But too bad, because Huny began to talk to Haruhi, and their eye contact was broken, along with their train of thought.

* * *

Mori sat as stoic as ever, but his mind was not as still as his body. At the moment he was contemplating college and how the host club would be without him and Huny, although mostly the latter. His eyes traveled over the faces at the table, resting for a moment longer on Haruhi's. Huny knew his cousin better than Mori himself did. Huny was positive that the 'wild type' liked the 'natural type'. The real question was, did Mori? But it didn't matter. She'd made her choice. His eyes also rested on a short blond host. His constant companion. His head turned and wide, brown, childlike eyes rested on his.

"You're going to miss them too, Takashi," said the shortest host. It was a statement, not a question. He indulged his cousin with a small smile.

"Yeah," he said, looking around. His eyes rested on a red-haired host, and he unthinkingly did not stay true to his usual one-word response. "I will."

* * *

Hikaru and Kaoru, although being the main participants in the conversation at the table, were half lost somewhere else. Their twin telepathy was working overtime, a long conversation of guilt and reassurance mixed with hand holding. Hikaru was always the impulsive one, the protector of his brother, the instigator of the twincest acts. Kaoru was more level-headed, and he clung more subtly albeit just as tight, if not tighter to his twin. In the club, Hikaru was always portrayed as the leader and the more dominant twin. But it wasn't necessarily true. Hikaru was louder, yes, and more showy, yes, but he was not necessarily the stronger one.

Kaoru was more mature. Hikaru was the older one, but he had not quite learned life's lessons as well as his twin had. He could not express himself so elegantly and easily as his poetic other half could. He often acted more childishly because his feelings were kept bottled up, resulting in temper-tantrum-like behavior. Because Kaoru was the calm one, he was occasionally the only one with his wits about him. In those cases, he was the one in charge, and he was very good at wheedling his brother into doing what he wanted. Hikaru knew, in no uncertain terms, that he was not controlling their relationship, despite what they let others believe. Whether or not he thought that his twin was is another matter. But they let everyone else think that Hikaru was because he was the older twin.

_I'm sorry, Kaoru._

_I'm _fine_ Hikaru. The doctor said that, and I'm saying it. It's just a sprain. And it's not your fault,_ responded the younger twin gently.

_But I pushed you._

_I pushed you _first_. What were you supposed to do, not retaliate?_

_But I was the one who started fooling around…I should have known something would happen. I knew it was a steep path…_

_Please, just stop Hikaru. I'll be fine soon. It's not like I broke my arm,_ said Kaoru, deciding to end the conversation. He was getting irritated with his brother's guilt. Hikaru kept a look on his face, but remained silent to his brother's relief. They were both remembering his fall off of the carriage. Kaoru squeezed his brother's hand for comfort, and Hikaru squeezed back. They then finally gave the conversation their full attention.

**A/N: Well that was really slow… I'm sorry it took me so long to update… been superbly busy. Anyhow, I need ideas! Review and give me some? Please? I need a good way to develop everything before I end it. I have the end in my mind, but I feel like there's too much to do before we actually get to it. If you have any ideas, share! Thanks for reading!**


	26. Trickery and Thievery

Caitlyn had been the first into the dining room as she didn't feel the need to do anything but change and let her hair down. Therefore, she had been the first to sit down, the first to begin eating, and the first to finish.

"I'm stuffed," she said, putting down her napkin after wiping her mouth delicately. She ate in a refined manner, much to the slight surprise of some of the hosts who noticed. They'd expected less from a commoner, especially Caitlyn.

Kyouya looked up from his nearly empty plate. He knew that this time there was no reason to escort anyone to their room, as they'd all been there before to change and there were servants now, but almost wished that he could. Or perhaps just the only non-host member of their group. She stood then, and he noticed that she wore no lace leggings or jewelry besides earrings and those rings, both of which she never went without. He didn't even think she took off her rings. She didn't get up immediately however, instead choosing to wait and continue her conversation. A thought seemingly struck her however, and she turned to Kyoya with a smirk.

"Hey, Kyoya, this is a hotel, so you have a swimming pool, right?" she asked, looking at him innocently. He raised an eyebrow, wondering what his response should be.

"Of course we have a pool," he replied, as if to say that even suggesting they didn't was an insult.

"Is it clean?" she queried again. His eyebrows scrunched slightly, much to her amusement, his face betraying a little of his puzzlement.

"Of course."

"Good enough to bathe in clean? Or just relatively clean for a pool?" she goaded. His features twisted into something akin to a scowl.

"Are you trying to insult my family's ability to keep a hotel?" he scoffed. "Of course it's clean. Although I don't suggest you bathe in it; it's for the use of the whole hotel."

Caitlyn smiled triumphantly, and Kyoya realized he'd walked right into her trap. He wasn't quite sure what it was yet, but there was definitely something there. "Well, you said you wouldn't swim because the ocean is dirty and you would get sunburned," she said matter-of-factly. "So now you have to swim with me. I'll race you; first to do ten laps wins."

The other hosts stared at them, waiting for his answer. Kyoya raised an eyebrow, mentally cursing himself for falling for her trick. "Why would I do that? You're not supposed to swim after you eat."

Caitlyn smiled innocently. "That's only for half an hour or so. By the time everyone's finished eating and we've changed, it'll be past that." Her smile turned wicked. "Or are you too chicken?"

"Chicken?" asked Kyoya, his eyebrow somehow arching even higher. "It has nothing to do with me being _chicken_ as you so crudely put it. There's simply no merit in it for me."

Caitlyn's grin widened, and Kyoya sighed inwardly. Obviously she'd thought of this beforehand. There was something she had that he wanted. He didn't know what it was, but he knew that she wouldn't be so confident if it wasn't something she knew he would want. She leaned forward in her chair, placing her chin on her laced fingers, the perfect image on innocence as she stared at him with that infuriating smile.

"Are you sure about that?" she asked sweetly. She leaned back suddenly and turned to Haruhi, pretending not to notice everyone staring at her. "You know, my friends and I used to get pretty bored before I transferred to Stuyvesant. School wasn't very challenging, you know what I mean." Haruhi nodded, bemused. "Well you're obviously a better person than I am, so you probably studied anyway, even though you didn't need to. Outlined next week's chapter in the textbook, that type of thing. Me? I tried to find ways to occupy myself. First I took up human anatomy. I memorized all the pressure points, all the major arteries; that type of thing. It was useful in New York. A girl's gotta know how to defend herself, you know? Then I got bored with that and I took up dagger tossing, which was fun… but it kinda pissed off my parents. So I decided I was good enough at that and I took up poison. I memorized this whole book on poison. Which was pretty cool too, but after that I got bored with it. I mean, after you know how to poison someone forty different ways, stuff gets boring. I liked the adrenaline of crazier things. So I took up something a little more… dangerous. The art of thievery."

The whole table was looking at her with awe, envy, skepticism and fear. Well, it depended on which host one was talking about, but Kyoya knew in his gut that she'd come to her main point now. And he was beginning to think he knew what she had that he wanted; something that belonged to him in the first place.

"I started off easy, stealing candy and stuff from Duane Reade and Wallmart. No one ever cared enough to pay attention to that stuff. It got boring after a while, and my friends didn't think it was interesting after that. So I moved on to Barnes & Nobles. That was a little harder, but I mastered that too. I picked locks, but then doors got boring too. So I moved on to something a little more challenging; pockets. Soon I could take my friend's phone without him ever noticing. I never got bored with that one. It's so entertaining to see their expressions. I never actually picked anyone's pockets of course; I only steal from those who can afford it, and not individuals. Like chain stores. And only when I'm broke and I really want something. I just pick pockets of my friends for fun. It became a little game. Then I'd give them two presents for their birthday, or Christmas. One with my present, one with something that was theirs. Nothing they ever needed though."

Haruhi was looking at her with wide eyes, Tamaki staring at Kyoya and obviously wondering what she had of his. Huni and Mori were looking at each other, obviously speaking about something. The twins were looking at her with identical admiring glints in their eyes, and Caitlyn grinned at them, a silent promise to teach them.

_Wonderful_, Kyoya thought as she turned back to him with a grin and a glint akin to the twins' in her eye.

"So, Kyoya. Check your pockets. I think you might change your mind about that swim."

He scowled at her as he checked his pockets. His phone was there, his wallet, his room key, his note-

_She wouldn't_, he thought, dread creeping down the back of his neck as he checked again. Three, four times. No… it was definitely gone.

"What have you done with my notebook?" he growled, his eyes sparking. The twins stared at her in envious disbelief, the ncowered under his glare. She continued to smile sweetly at him.

"I haven't had the chance to read it yet, although as you have your nose in it all the time and can seemingly never put it down, I'm inclined to think it's very interesting. Should I look at it instead of swimming?"

"Where is it?" he snarled. "That is my personal business and you have no right to read it, you obnoxious-"

"I just wanted to get to know you better. No need to call me names," Caitlyn teased, but he could see in her eyes she was cautious now. He glared at her, her smile not faltering for a single second as mahogany eyes clashed with slate-grey ones in a thunderous battle across the table.

* * *

Caitlyn continued to smile, but she could tell she was treading on thin ice. Despite him being a nice person, he was definitely not someone one would want to make an enemy out of. She was beginning to regret taking his book, but she knew if she gave it back now he'd gloat intolerably for the rest of the summer. She would never actually look in it of course, even though the temptation was killing her. It was obviously personal; she wasn't dense. She was just hoping for something to break that cool and collected exterior. Now that she'd seen inside of those glinting glass walls, she was itching to see it again. Suddenly she wanted to get inside, to find the door. Not to crack him – he was already too fragile; it would be too easy. No, she wanted to get inside without changing a thing. To find the button, open the door without any damage. She wanted to know how someone so completely pure like Tamaki could trust and love him so completely. She wanted to understand him… and maybe then she could understand herself better. Or rather, these were the excuses she gave herself. She wasn't ready to admit anything but curiosity and perhaps a desire for friendship just as yet.

Right now, however, she needed to reassure him.

"If you really don't want me to look at it I won't; race me and you can have it back. I don't expect you to _win_; I was on the swim team at my old school. It wouldn't be fair," she said sincerely. A corner of her mouth turned up. "Of course, if you just admit you're too chicken to race me you can have it back right now. I'll go get it."

Kyoya glared at her for a few more moments, then pulled back and adjusted his glasses. "Fine. I'll race you." The sparks in his eyes had dimmed a little bit; he'd realized she meant no harm when she gave him a way out. It wasn't much of one, but it was a way out. She knew the best he could do was take her challenge and win, therefore beating her at her own sport and getting back his book. He turned as he rose, however, and looked back at her with a smirk. Caitlyn waited; this was dangerous ground she was treading on now. She could make an enemy of him if she pushed him too far. She could see that now.

"If I win, can I ask for something of yours in return?" he asked, the evilest smirk she'd seen yet on his face. Caitlyn pursed her lips.

"Depends on what it is," she said dryly. His smirk widened.

"What, afraid you'll lose?" he asked smoothly. Caitlyn sighed. This was going to cost her somehow, she just knew it.

"Not at all. But I can't give you a piece of the moon, nor will I be your slave like Haruhi was," she said with some resigned amusement.

"It won't be too extreme."

"Anything within reason, then," she said with a shrug. She didn't plan on losing anyway. Kyoya's smile widened, and someone (probably the twins) whimpered at the undisguised malice displayed in the pale young man's face. He turned to his fellow hosts.

"You all bear witness to her statement," he said, his tone making it a command, not a request. Caitlyn suppressed another sigh; yes, this was going to cost her.

**A/N: Awww Cait-chan, what have you gotten yourself into? XD I love Huni… I need to include him more. And I know I keep changing the name spelling… I'm sorry… T.T Anyways, reviews are good… comment, suggestions, flames, whatever. I'm actually not sure if he should win or lose… votes? Anyone?**


	27. Race to the Finish

Caitlyn stretched nonchalantly as she waited for Kyoya. She wasn't very flexible, it was true, but she hadn't swum competitively for a while and she needed to loosen her muscles. Mori and Huni had been appointed the judges for obvious reasons, and they stood at either corner of the pool, watching the finish line. Tamaki, Haruhi and the twins where lined up in height order on the bench, arguing over the most likely outcome. Well, Tamaki and the twins were arguing. Tamaki was obviously rooting for Kyoya, the twins arguing that their new toy (she could have sworn she'd gotten rid of that nickname) would win by a landslide. Haruhi was simply sitting there and alternating between worried looks at Kaoru and indecipherable ones at Caitlyn. The taller girl had the feeling she was trying to tell her something, but as she was about to walk over and ask Kyoya walked in, looking highly irritated and wrapped in a silk robe of some sort. He glared at the twins, the full effect of his onyx eyes unleashed on them as they tried very hard to look innocent all of a sudden and failed.

"When I asked if you had a pair of swimming trunks suitable for doing laps this was _not _what I meant," he growled. The twins laughed nervously and inched a little closer to Tamaki.

"Milord…" they mumbled together. Tamaki sighed and shook his head in response.

"What did you put him in?" he asked resignedly.

Caitlyn smiled slyly. "Speedos?" she drawled. The twins snorted and even Tamaki's mouth turned up a little bit. Kyoya glared at her, and she couldn't help but think his eyes were rather becoming when contrasted with his pale skin.

"What?" Hikaru got up the nerve to ask.

"You don't like our designs?" continued Kaoru.

"Fine. Give it back to us and swim in your oversized swim trunks."

" We're sure the drag won't affect you at all."

Caitlyn wondered how in the seven hells they did that. They grinned, strengthened by each other, and leaned forward and put their elbows on their knees simultaneously, one arm around the other twin.

"At least they're not Speedos," they said together. Caitlyn snickered, and Tamaki smiled a little in spite of himself. Even Haruhi was looking at Kyoya curiously now.

"Well come on, let's see what you're so worked up about," Caitlyn said with a lightly teasing smile. Kyoya pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes for a moment, and Caitlyn could almost hear his sentiment before it was spoken, unheard by the others.

"I need an asprin," he mumbled, and Caitlyn chuckled a little as he came closer to her and removed the black garment draped around him, tossing it to Tamaki who caught it reflexively. The shorts were a little closer fitting than the ones he had before, and not as long. There were no pockets or anything like that, and the design wasn't really laughable. It was the print that was obviously discomforting to the Shadow Lord. A light lavender, the shorts screamed for attention with the word Hitachin imprinted across the back in gold script, the rest of it covered in golden hibiscus flowers and little stars.

"You can have one once we race," she said to him with a smirk, but her voice was sincere behind the amusement. The twins had gone back to bickering with Tamaki now that they were about to start, and Huni began to count down from ten. "I have ibuprofen in my bag. It's the only medicine I ever take voluntarily. I get migraines."

Kyoya looked at her, by now no longer surprised by her seemingly extrasensory hearing. "Migraines? From what?" he asked, curiosity winking at her from his dark eyes. She didn't respond.

"You're not going to remove your shorts?" he tried again, raising an eyebrow. Caitlyn looked down at her tankini and shorts, then shrugged.

"It's fairer this way. The drag is equal," she replied.

"Shy, are we?" he said with a smirk. It was her turn to raise an eyebrow.

"Alright, I can take them off," she said, straightening as if to remove her shorts.

"Oh, no, it's alright," he replied quickly.

Caitlyn looked at him with some amusement, and he looked back at her with a smirk. She smiled a dazzling smile in response, and Kyoya felt like blinking for a second.

_Don't be ridiculous_, he told himself sternly, and trained his eyes on the pool.

"Good luck," Caitlyn said, and he could practically see her grin as Huni suddenly yelled something and she dove into the water. Kyoya started in surprise and followed suit far less gracefully, the twins' laughter ringing in his ears.

"You can do it Mommy!!!!" screeched Tamaki from the bench, making both the twins and Haruhi cover their ears. In the same identical positions, the twins called out as well.

"Go on! Beat the Shadow-Lord!"

Caitlyn was in the process of flipping over already, as Kyoya reached the other side, swimming as fast as his body would allow. Caitlyn, on the other hand, although swimming fast, seemed to be exerting no effort at all. Her pace was even and steady, not faltering even once. Kyoya's desperation seemed to be paying off however, and by the third lap he was ahead of her by a good foot. Tamaki and the twins' screams were nearly deafening now as the twins demanded she catch up and Tamaki cheered at Kyoya's lead. Haruhi had disappeared somewhere as Huni yelled go for no particular participant. Even Mori seemed to be watching them intently. By the time Caitlyn finished her fifth lap, Kyoya was turning into the second half of his sixth. His usually pale complexion was flushed, and his breath was coming in uneven spurts as the exertion of swimming as fast as he could began to take its toll. Caitlyn, however, was seemingly unaffected by the exercise other than her breathing being slightly increased, and seemed to be gaining in speed.

"He's slowing!" called Kaoru, grinning.

"Ha! Come on!" Hikaru added, although not as exuberantly as his twin.

"Don't listen to them Kyoya! You can do it! Mommy will win!" screamed Tamaki in response.

They were coming around the eighth lap now, neck in neck as Kyoya tried to get back to his previous blinding speed and Caitlyn slowly increased her pace in nearly unnoticeable increments. Haruhi had returned with two large towels and was standing at the edge of the pool and watching with a certain amount of interest as the two contestants flipped and headed into the final lap, still neck in neck. Caitlyn seemed to make a decision at that point and began to swim even faster, her body reminding Haruhi a bit of an eel as she snaked through the water, flipping over before Kyoya.

"CAIT-CHAN WINS!" announced Huni loudly as the girl came in at least four inches ahead of Kyoya. She pulled herself out of the water quickly, barely panting at all, a wide grin on her face. She held a hand out to Kyoya, who looked up at her with a raised eyebrow and pulled himself out of the pool, ignoring her hand completely.

"You know, I actually had to try at the end there. Not bad at all," she said, genuine surprise in her voice. Kyoya took the offered towel from Haruhi and gave the raven-haired girl a look.

"Thank you Haruhi," he said, still looking at her as she toweled her hair. His breath was coming fast and irregular, but somehow he managed to remain looking refined. "Perhaps I should update my 'stalker file' as you call it. You're obviously part fish."

"Cait-chan, wow!" cred Huni, bouncing over. "You're really good! You should join the team next year! Right Takashi?"

"…hai," agreed the tall senior, looking down at his constant companion.

"I plan to," she replied with a smile. Huni beamed back at her. "But the season was over by the time I got here."

"Perhaps she was a mermaid in another life," teased the twins, Hikaru's arm slung over his brother as he supported himself on crutches, Kaoru leaning ever so slightly on him. Tamaki's eyes sparkled.

"Oh, Kyoya! I have the best idea for the club next year! An ocean theme! We could all be merpeople…"

Caitlyn sighed and looked at Haruhi who rolled her eyes at the taller girl in response. "There he goes again…"

**A/N: I should have given him Speedos… it would have been funnier. XD But I decided there was no way Kyoya would ever wear Speedos. Ah, Tamaki… however does Haruhi stand you? I liked this chapter. All the angst is gone and everyone's happy and making fun of each other like in the earlier episodes. I missed this in the last few depressing episodes and in the recent angst-filled chapters of the manga. It always bothered me that when you see twincest in FF it's constantly angst and sex. In general that's ok, but that's not all there is to love. So now that they made up I've been trying to put it into the story in subtle ways. : ) Anyway, reviews! Please? *puppy dog eyes***


	28. Half a Heart

Kyoya closed the door of his room quietly, slipping the card into his pocket as he walked down the hall. It was after midnight at this point, but he knew that Caitlyn was an insomniac. There was no way she'd be asleep, so he saw no point in waiting until tomorrow to get his notebook. The halls were quiet and a little dark, and he pondered his situation as he watched his shadow slide along the halls.

"…inexorably intolerable," he grumbled to himself. _Especially this most recent example of her amusement at my expense. I am not a toy to be played with._ He turned the corner, a small scowl on his face, his damp hair shading his eyes.

_But she was obviously sincere when she said she wouldn't read it… and I suppose I could marry worse. She's rather attractive. _

_Although I'm not sure if that makes up for the shortcomings in personality,_ he thought dryly. Yet, he'd never have someone question his authority quite the way she did. She was interesting… that much he could say without any negativity attached. Or perhaps that wasn't true; interesting was only amusing to a certain point. Black-mailing him into swimming… he grumbled again and stopped in front of her door, pausing for a moment before knocking gently. If she was awake she would hear it, but it wasn't loud enough to wake someone. Well, someone with normal hearing…

"One second!" came the immediate response. Kyoya leaned against the doorframe, yawning as the door was pulled open. Caitlyn stood there toweling her hair dry, and Kyoya looked at her in shock. No surprise registered on his face, but her huge black men's t-shirt with a breast pocket and cut-off denim shorts weren't exactly her typical attire. Her hair was in dripping waves around her face, her lashes wet and dark from her shower. No buckles, no excessive black, nothing but her rings, sapphire earrings, and an anklet with…

_Are those flowers?_ he thought, wondering whether he should be amused or stunned.

"Oh, your notebook," she said, yawning at the sight of him doing so. She opened the door wider and turned around. "Come on in. Or not, whatever."

After a moment's hesitation, he stepped inside and shut the door behind him. The click seemed to echo inside of his mind, bouncing across his consciousness. He was alone in a hotel room with the girl his father wished for him to court. This should be interesting. He sat down on the bed and watched as she dug through her small suitcase, a little black duffel-bag, and pulled out a wad of cloth that seemed to be a shirt with netting instead of sleeves, the cuff normal cloth with a hole in it that was stitched in. Before he could wonder what she'd dug It out for, his notebook appeared from inside and she tossed the shirt back on top of the bag, holding it out towards him and yawning again.

"Here," she said with a smirk. He took it warily, making her smirk widen into a teasing grin. One side of his mouth twisted up into a dry smile in response.

"Thank you," he said, albeit a little sarcastically. Her teasing grin turned into a beaming smile of mirth, and he blinked instinctively. _Why do all of my companions seem to have that ability… Huni-Senpai, Hikaru, Kaoru, and Tamaki… _

Caitlyn had tilted her head to the side and was staring at him with a curious expression on her face now. She'd leaned back against the wall and had her arms and legs crossed, her hair falling into her eyes a little. Suddenly he had the oddest urge to get up and tuck the stray locks behind her ear. He ignored it.

"You did rather well today," she said, interrupting his thoughts. He shrugged.

"The son of a medical company must be physically fit. If I were anything other than fit, it would put a negative image on the business's abilities," he said nonchalantly. Caitlyn rolled her eyes in response, smirking.

"Is everything about work with you?" she asked, obviously rhetorically. He looked at her and waited. "Out of curiosity… what would you have asked for if you had won?"

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "What does it matter? You're not going to give me what I desire in any case. Why should I give you something else to blackmail me with? You knowing what I want has proven to be dangerous."

Caitlyn chuckled. "Well, you did rather well. It's not fair to ask you to beat me when I race competitively in swimming."

"Is that a promise?" he asked archly. His eyes glittered dangerously, and Caitlyn twisted her lips.

"No."

"But if I tell you and you think it's reasonable you might give me what I wish."

"Might."

"Why?"

Caitlyn opened her mouth to shoot something back but then paused and closed it again. He watched as something flickered across her face for a moment, gone as soon as it came. She bit her lip, choosing her words carefully. "I decided that… perhaps it wasn't exactly… fair… or kind… to force you to race me."

"So this is compensation then?"

"Why does everything have to be about profit for you?!" she exclaimed, her eyes glittering now. Kyoya blinked, taken aback by her outburst. "Can't you ever just accept that someone might be doing something because they're nice? Normal people do that you know, anyone with half a heart. Some people don't feel the need to hide everything they do behind a smokescreen. It's not like you _have_ to either. You just do it to frustrate people and seem mysterious. Do you know how juvenile that is?"

Kyoya stared at her for what must have been a minute at least, complete and total shock plastered across his face. Finally, his eyebrows moved together slightly, his eyes contracting slightly as he opened his mouth to say something earnest. She turned away instead of hearing it, looking out through the glass doors of the balcony.

"Nevermind. Forget it. Just… get out." Her voice wavered slightly on the last two words, and Kyoya stood instinctively and looked at her reflection in the glass. A small tear was leaking down her cheek. Without thinking, he spun her around to face him, keeping his hands on her shoulders.

"I apologize, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I don't know what I did, but please, don't cry." He didn't know where the words came from, but they didn't sound so bad once spoken. She laughed bitterly.

"It wasn't anything you said. You just… you reminded me of someone. All she ever cared about was what benefitted her. She didn't care who she hurt with her pursuits." He sat down on the bed, pulling her down next to him.

"She hurt you, I assume," he said, gently prompting her to go on. A bitter smile still sat upon her lips as she shrugged, and he wanted to get rid of it somehow. "Caitlyn…" He tilted her chin up to look at him, and her dark eyes seemed to drown him. "I'm sorry."

She looked up at him, her eyebrows pulling together slightly in confusion. "You are, aren't you?" He returned her bitter smile.

"You seem so surprised by that."

"I am."

He paused, trying out this new skill he seemed to possess. He looked her straight in the eye, his face inches from hers. "I'm sorry for that, too."

Her face seemed to soften before him, and he watched with awe. Had he always been able to do that? Or was it just that being with this particular girl made him feel so strange… He suddenly had the inexplicable urge to lean in and feel those soft lips with his own, but they parted and words fell through before he could make a decision.

"Um, what?" he asked, clearing his throat. Caitlyn cleared hers too, pulling back a little, but they still sat side by side, sides pressed against each other.

"I don't suppose you'll tell me what you wanted," she repeated. He blinked, and for the first time in as long as he could remember, his face flushed slightly. Caitlyn raised her eyebrow high at that.

"Ah…"

"It can't be that bad, can it?" she asked, laughing warily. "What was it, a massage? With suntan lotion?"

Kyoya had to smile at that. "Not exactly."

"Well?"

He paused, staring into those dark eyes, slightly red from withheld tears. Somehow, he trusted her enough to do this right now. She seemed to have enough heart to be somewhat kind about it. He cleared his throat and tried out his new tactic, looking deep into those seemingly bottomless pools.

"I was going to ask for a date."

**A/N: Ah ha, cliffhanger! God, that took forever… if the characters weren't so damned stubborn… -.- lol. Anyways, comments are awesome. Flames, whatever… leave 'em for me! Thanks for reading!**


	29. Angelic Amoureux

"A date?" Caitlyn asked stupidly. She blinked, then laughed. "You're joking."

Kyoya looked at her. Well there were worse ways for this to go than her laughing at him. She could have screamed at him and said no. Then the truth broke across her face like dawn and her amused expression turned to one of shock. Kyoya smiled wryly.

"You're not joking."

He shook his head coolly.

"Are you crazy? Me? And you? We'd kill each other!" she burst out. Kyoya raised an eyebrow at this. "Don't give me that look, you know it's true."

"Do I?" he asked archly.

"The tension between us is so thick you could touch it."

He looked at her with amusement for a few moments before an idea occurred to him. He smirked, leaning in close to her. Her breath hitched involuntarily before it occurred to her she could move back. So close to her face, his glasses couldn't glint, and the look in his eyes set her heart going like a racehorse.

"There's definitely something between us. That much I'll grant you." She pushed him back in response, and Kyoya had the feeling that if her complexion wasn't as dark as it was she would be obviously blushing. As it was, there seemed to be a slight hint of pink to her cheeks, but he couldn't be sure. She stood up and walked back towards the balcony doors.

"You're insane," she said, slightly breathless. Kyoya shrugged and adjusted his glasses.

"Maybe I am," he said nonchalantly. "However, I note that you haven't agreed or declined."

He watched her reflection as she blinked in shock. Then a small smirk appeared on her face. She turned around, her head tilted to the side. He watched her, having the feeling that he wasn't going to like what was coming next. He kept his face neutral, however.

"Suppose I agree, then. Host club members don't date. It's bad for business, obviously. How would you suggest we take care of that problem?"

"What problem? Most girls are afraid of me. If I have a girlfriend, I must obviously not be someone to be feared. We might even bring in more customers. The idea of being able to actually _date_ a host is a tempting one." He smiled angelically at her, and she could almost see a spear-head tail flicking across her sheets. Demon Lord indeed. "And I don't have that many designators, in any case. I usually do management duties, selling products…"

Caitlyn sighed. She had the feeling she was going to regret the decision she was leaning towards. "Why?"

"Why, what?" Kyoya asked, a hint of bemusement crossing his usual stoic features.

"Why would you want to date me?" she asked, amused. It was his turn to blink.

"Why not?"

"What about all those other pretty rich girls at Ouran?"

Kyoya scoffed, mask dropping. "Have you ever spent more than half an hour with any of them? They're all the same; either overly ambitious and therefore have no time for young men such as myself, or they're empty-headed and boring. Who would want to date any of them?"

Caitlyn stared at him for a few moments, the corners of her lips twitching. He looked at her expression.

"What?"

She burst out laughing, and Kyoya watched this with a certain amount of bemusement. Her face seemed to soften, eyes crinkling at the corners, smile wide and brilliant… She had a laugh that was slightly evil, but the cackling didn't seem to matter to him. She waved at him, and it took him a while for him to figure out she wanted him to stand up.

"Get out then, _amoureux_. We can talk more when it's not three in the morning."

"Was that French?" he asked amusedly, a hint of confusion trickling into his usually cool voice. "Tamaki rubbing off on you?"

She smirked and opened the door for him in response.

"What does it mean?" he persisted.

Her eyes sparkled. "Go ask Tamaki. He wakes you up often enough."

* * *

Tamaki's violet eyes sparkled, even in the terrible lighting of the limo. They reminded him of Caitlyn's own dark eyes, but Kyoya tried not to think about that. Instead he sighed, almost afraid he'd asked. He wasn't sure spending the long, multiple-hour ride back to the city with the blond idiot was worth it.

"Is there something you're not telling Daddy?" he cooed. Kyoya rolled his eyes.

"Of course not. Would you just answer the question, Tamaki?"

Tamaki sighed dreamily, a smile drifting onto his face. "It means lover, or sweetheart." He broke out of it and looked at Kyoya's slightly poleaxed expression with a certain amount of delight. "Does Mommy have a mistress too?"

"Shut up, Tamaki," Kyoya growled, shoving the blond's face away. He hid his thumping heart's reaction easily as Tamaki laughed.

"I'll find out anyway. It's ok," he said simply, and proceeded to continue his dreams about their 'daughter'.

_Incest and cheating,suddenly all perfectly acceptable in this "family" of his,_ Kyoya thought dryly. _Not disturbing at all, of course…_

**A/N: And he doesn't even have proof about the twins yet, despite what he may or may not suspect… XD Anywho, Comments, Suggestions, Flames, whatever all welcome! Tell me what you think! And sorry it's so short…**


	30. Bridging the Gap

Caitlyn stretched like a cat and climbed out of bed, reaching over to turn off her alarm. She could have sworn she'd turned the damn thing off for summer…

"Oh, it's the stupid phone," she grumbled, fumbling to unplug her sell from the charger. "What?"

"That's no way to answer the phone."

"You might offend someone."

She growled. She had no patience for the twins today. "What do you want?"

"We're all going out for lunch."

"We're hungry."

"Then we're seeing a movie," they finished togfether. One day she'd have to figure out how they did that, but today she wasn't in the mood.

"Lunch? It's only noon," she replied tartly. "I'm going back to sleep."

"Sleep?"

"At this hour?"

"Kyoya, she's worse than you!"

There was a sardonic reply she couldn't make out from the other end, probably concerning the fact that they'd dropped his honorific. She could practically hear the twins pouting through the phone. Tamaki cried something and Haruhi deadpanned right back. There was a whooshing noise.

"Come to lunch, Cait-chan! We can have cake!" Huni cried into the reciever, blasting her ears. She growled uninteligibly. The phone made another noise, presumably thrust into someone else's hands.

"Hi," Haruhi said, voice deviod of emotion. "They gave me the phone."

"No! Tell her to come!" a chorus of voices intoned in the background.

"You do it. If she doesn't want to come I'm not going to force her. God knows you people drag me out against my will all the time…"

"Don't you want to spend time with me?" Tamaki shrieked loud enough for Caitlyn to hear. Haruhi squeaked and there was another whooshing noise. Caitlyn assumed her friend had dropped the phone.

"Nice catch, Kyoya-Senpai," the twins applauded. Kyoya's scoff was apparent through the phone lines; he obviously thought very little of the feat.

"Please, they're giving me a headache," he mumbled. "A personal record, considering it's only noon." He paused as there was a dry statement followed by screaming in the background. Another cutting remark on Haruhi's behalf, Caitlyn was sure. "I'm sure I can speak for Haruhi on that account as well."

She sighed heavily. "Fine," she grumbled resignedly. "But you owe me."

There was a chuckle on the other side. "I make no promises," was the dry reply. "We'll pick you up in forty-five minutes to an hour. We have to drag Tamaki out of this park first."

A chorus of various exclamations such as "Yay! Cait-chan is coming." and "How'd you get her to agree?" rang in the background as she groaned, closed the phone, and stumbled off to the bathroom.

"Why do I agree to these things…"

* * *

Caitlyn yawned wide. Summer was when she usually caught up on her sleep. Her body seemed to refuse to belive that humans were diurnal, and she spent much of the night working on her art or out on walks. Her aunt wasn't too keen on the latter, but they were both more than aware of how well Caitlyn was able to take care of herself. She had hoped that moving to Japan would change her body's strange sleeping habits, but it hadn't helped at all. She debated the idea of pretending not to hear the door when they arrived, but then decided they were liable to break it down for her. She sighed and curled up on the couch to wait, bag packed already. She had been sitting there for less than a minute when there was a knock at the door.

"Cait-chan!"

"Caitlyn!"

"Hel-_lo_-oh…"

"Kindly open the door before these idiots hurt themselves."

"She knows we're coming, right Kyoya?"

"Yes…"

"So then why isn't she opening the door?"

"Tamaki, it would do you well to learn a little patience-"

Caitlyn opened the door and had to step aside quickly before Tamaki could fall on top of her. Kyoya pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath, remaining in the doorway as most of the host club shoved around him and crowded into her living room. Haruhi waited politely outside until Caitlyn waved her in tiredly.

"Look, she has a TV!"

"I didn't know commoners could afford TVs…"

"You know, she has a cell-phone too!"

"You're right, Hikaru…"

Caitlyn glared daggers at the twins, and they fell silent.

"Don't be rude!" Tamaki whispered loudly. "Remember what happened last time."

"Might I ask why you are all _inside_ her apartment?" Kyoya drawled wearily, giving up and enetering her home. She closed the door behind him.

"We all wanted to see Cait-chan's house, right?" There was a chorus of 'yeah!'s from the twins and Tamaki. "Ne, Takashi?"

The tall senior nodded as Huni looked expectantly at Haruhi.

"I've already seen her house," Haruhi deadpanned. "I thought we were picking her up for lunch."

"We are!" Tamaki replied brightly.

"Where's your bathroom?" asked Hikaru, feigning boredom. Caitlyn knew he just wanted an excuse to look at the rest of her house, but she couldn't tell him he wasn't allowed to use it.

"End of the hall." He turned down the corridor, frowning at the closed doors. Caitlyn turned her attention to the rest of the people crowded around her livingroom.

"Tamaki! Don't touch that vase!" She glared at the blond prince.

"I won't drop it," he said indignantly. "Just because I'm dating Haruhi…"

"What was that?" the brunette said, raising an eyebrow. Tamaki jumped.

"Um, nothing…"

Caitlyn groaned and put her fingers to her temples as the doorbell rang. The hosts didn't even seem to notice. Hikaru had returned and he and Kaoru were poking their noses into her various kitchen cabinets as Haruhi ignored Tamaki's pleading. Huni had found a box of cookies and Mori was opening it for him. Kyoya had mysteriously dissapeared, she hoped to use the bathroom. She highly doubted it, however.

She pulled the door open with a sigh, letting her brother into the house.

"What are you doing home so early? I thought you went to play ball with your friends."

He blinked at the chaos in their living-room in response, looking at his sister with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't ask, Andy," she grumbled, still in english. "I didn't invite them. They shoved in. They were supposed to pick me up, not drop in."

"Host Club?" he asked dryly. His eyes flashed to something Hikaru and Kaoru were fiddling with. "Hey! Leave that alone!"

The room froze and looked at the newest arrival in the room. Hikaru put her brother's prized baseball glove down on the counter where he'd found it slowly, looking at Andy as if he was a rare type of magical plant or something. The boy ignored the sudden silence, instead looking at Haruhi.

"Can you dress like that if everyone thinks you're a boy?" he asked, looking at the long pink sleeveless shirt she was wearing over her t-shirt and capris. Haruhi shrugged.

"It's not like we're going to run into any girls. And if we do, I don't think they'll recognize me anyway."

"Good point," he replied. He snagged his glove from the counter and waltzed towards his room, but when he opened the door he stopped halfway through the frame. "Cait, you've got some nosy friends."

"Who says they're my friends?" she demanded. The host club blinked at the sudden switch of languages. Kyoya walked out of Andrew's room, looking embarassed if she'd ever seen him so. He adjusted his glasses as the twins snickered.

"Andrew, I assume," he said, putting out a hand. Andy looked at Kyoya's long fingers dubiously.

"The Shadow Prince or whatever?"

"King, Lord… doesn't make a difference," Caitlyn agreed, glaring daggers at Kyoya.

"You're right. He should mind his own business." Andy looked at him closer. "He doesn't look like a stalker. Huh."

"You have quite an array of trophies in that room," Kyoya continued, ignoring the other english conversation. Andy gave him a pointed look, walked around him, and shut the door in his face. The host club burst out laughing as Kyoya fixed his glasses. "Your brother is… charming."

"You shouldn't stick your pointy nose in other people's rooms. Maybe they'd be more cordial if you weren't such an asshole."

Kyoya blinked at the english term. "A what?"

Caitlyn blinked back, not sure how to say it in Japanese. She settled for glaring at him. "Trust me when I say it wasn't cordial."

"You'd never belive how easy that is," he drawled back. She ignored this and grabbed her bag from the couch.

"Alright, I'm hungry. Get out of my livingroom."

"But-"

"Out. Now." Her tone of voice left no room for argument, and the host club tumbled out of the apartment hapahzardly, Kyoya and Caitlyn trailing last. She stuck her head through the remaining crack in the door, calling to her brother in english. "See you later, Andy. There's lasagna in the fridge for lunch or whatever, 'kay?"

"Have fun…"

"Right," she snorted dryly. "Hey, lock the door? My keys are at the bottom of my bag somewhere."

"Yeah."

She turned around with a sigh as Andy emerged from his room and locked the door behind them. Kyoya looked at her speculatively as they walked down the stairs together. She raised a questioning eyebrow at him, and he responded with a glance towards the apartment door. She realized he was talking about her amiable relationship with her brother. She shrugged in response.

"We fight sometimes, " she clarified. "But we've been together since he was born. You can't ignore that, no matter who stole the remote or jacked my sketchbook as a joke or whatever. Siblings should be closer than anything else, even parents. They should be your friends."

"Agreed!" the twins called loudly through the window of their limo.

"Not in my family," Kyoya said with a certain measure of amusement. The driver opened the door for them and he motioned for her to get in first. Caitlyn gave him a look.

"There are more of you?" she said jokingly, feigning horror. He snorted as the car started.

"Four. I'm the youngest."

"Aha," Caitlyn nodded. "That makes sense." He raised an eyebrow. "That's where all the ambition comes from."

He blinked in surprise. "What?"

"Competition. You have the standard set already by the other members of your family. You have to live up to that, if not do better." She shrugged. "That happened to one of my older friends. His sister got into Harvard. His parents couldn't accept that he was more brawns than he was brains. But he got a sports scholarship into… I think it was Yale, for track, so they stopped complaining." Kyoya looked at her speculatively, and she raised an eyebrow at him. "What?"

"_Amoureux_?" he asked, smirking slightly. Her eyebrow dropped as her lips twisted slightly, hiding a smile. "I thought you took spanish back in America."

Her smile dissapeared. "How did you know that?" she demanded. Kyoya shrugged.

"My stalker file, as you so eloquently named it." Her eyes hardened immediately.

"Don't go snooping into my life!" she snapped. "What is it with you and personal space? Metaphorically or physically, you seem to demand that everyone respect yours when you don't have a single inkling for that of others'."

Kyoya was taken aback by her outburst. "I collect information," he said lamely. "You can ask anyone. It's not personal."

"That's the point!" she snarled. She crossed her arms and glared out the window, muttering in english. "Damn hypocritic jackass. Why does every remotely attractive guy have to be an ass?"

Kyoya stared at her, obviously unpleased by the course of events. He'd purposely suggested a resturant far away from Caitlyn's house, and told the driver to take it slow. He'd hoped he would be able to take this time to talk to her. He couldn't use the new tactic he'd learned in the hotel because she would't look at him. But… there was soemthing else that had worked that night. An idea crept into his head, so foreign he almost shoved it away.

_Well, if I'm to be a good '_amoureux_', I might as well start now,_ he thought resignedly. _Although I certainly hope this doesn't become a habit._ He cleared his throat. "I'm… sorry. I didn't mean to intrude." The words felt foreign in his mouth.

Caitlyn turned to him, shock and suspicion written into every molecule of her face. "Of course you meant to intrude," she said tartly. "That was the worst lie ever, especially considering you just admitted that you enjoy collecting information about other people." Kyoya's mouth twitched slightly.

"It seemed like the right thing to say."

"Well I don't give people bullshit, and therefore I don't expect any. This includes white lies. If I'm going to go on a date with you, we have to set that straight. Understand?"

Kyoya nodded stiffly like a soldier even as he smirked, mocking her. Her face softened and she shoved him lightly. He relaxed and looked at her, glasses clear so she could see his eyes. "I _would_ like to know more about you."

"Like what?" she asked dryly, but her heart wasn't in it.

"Anything."

"My favorite colors are black and blue," she deadpanned. Kyoya raised an eyebrow at her, and she snickered despite herself. She leaned back against the car door, facing towards him a little more. "I lived in New York, went to Stuy. Most of my friends were guys, if only because I have this severe aversion to anything girly. Most of them were pretty empty-headed, babbling about boys and schoolwork. It was the only thing that seemed to occupy their minds. It drove me crazy. I still talk to a few of my old friends."

"Do you miss them?" Kyoya asked, fascinated despite himself. He didn't understand how such trivial details could be so fascinating, but somehow they were. Caitlyn shrugged.

"Who wouldn't?" She looked at him, then smiled a little. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"How'd you get involved with the Host Club's nonsense? You don't seem the type to enjoy all that craziness." She tiltled her head to the side as she spoke, which made a few hairs fall into her face. Kyoya resisted the distracting urge to brush them away. "And how did you become best friends with Tamaki?" The way she said it made this the most unusual thing of all.

Kyoya chuckled. "Well, Tamaki transferred here from France…"

**A/N: Yay, they're not bitching at each other anymore! Sort of… XD. Sorry for taking forever to update! I've been soooooo busy with work and classes and everything, you have no idea. Anyhow, R&R. is Kyoya too OOC? I think he is, but I can't think of any way to fix that. Suggestions are highly appreciated. **


	31. Royal Pains

"So Tamaki's the half-orphaned son of a mistress?" Caitlyn asked stupidly. Kyoya smirked dryly.

"Essentially, although I might not say it so inelegantly," he said with a small chuckle. Caitlyn blinked.

"Huh. Not exactly how I imagined things at home," she said to herself. She glanced at Kyoya, smiling a bit. "You know, you'd think that someone who'd lost the maternal force in his life would be a little manlier."

Kyoya looked at her for a few moments before laughing. Caitlyn stared at him. If she knew anything about this dark-haired boy, it was that he hardly ever laughed. She relished the moment. "Yes, I do believe you're right."

"So what's your mother like?" she asked. The mirth dissipated from his face as if her words had sucked the happiness from him.

"I don't know. She passed when I was young." He paused, thinking. "My sister Fuyumi was the closest I ever had to a mother." He didn't know why he'd said it. There was no reason to. But it seemed to fit the moment, so he let it go.

"Oh…" Caitlyn said quietly. There was a quiet moment in the limo as it pulled to a stop in front of the restaurant, Kyoya wondering whether he should mention he knew she lived with her aunt or not. He decided against it, considering how she had reacted to information about her coming from him last time. They both started when the driver opened the door for them.

"You two going to sit in the car all day?" demanded the twins in unison. Shared melancholy gone like the wind, Kyoya adjusted his glasses and followed Caitlyn out of the limo.

"How do you two do that?"

"You won't believe us if we tell you." The twins headed up the stairs into the restaurant, Hikaru and Caitlyn helping Kaoru up the stairs with his leg. She gave them a look as Kyoya watched with a certain amount of interest.

"Try me."

"We'll tell you if you teach us to pick locks."

"Sure," she agreed. She'd already said she'd do this, but she'd been hesitating; the idea of the twins' mischievous minds learning how to pick locks was slightly frightening. The twins considered her as she handed Kaoru back the crutch she'd been holding, Hikaru handing his twin the other one.

"We have twin-powered telekinetic powers." Caitlyn snickered.

"Bullshit. No lock-picking lessons for you."

"Told you."

"Some people; so small minded, ne Hikaru?" They grinned cat-ate-the-canary smiles and headed into the restaurant. Caitlyn sighed and held the door for the rest of the hosts, waving on a protesting Tamaki that it was the man's job to do this for the woman, not the other way around. Kyoya followed last, walking in with her.

"So… how does tomorrow night sound? Seven? Or is that inconvenient?" he asked, smiling a little. Caitlyn raised an eyebrow at him, and then shrugged.

"Hell, why not. It's the summer, so it's not like it matters if it's Sunday." She looked at him. "A nice restaurant?"

He gave her a look. "Obviously." He offered his arm and she snorted and ignored it, walking into the restaurant and sitting in the spot left for her between Haruhi and Kaoru. Kyoya sighed inaudibly and sat across from her, next to Tamaki.

* * *

"Beg my broken heart to beat. Save my life. Change my mind. If I fall and all is lost, no light to lead the way, remember that all alone is where I belong…" Caitlyn stopped singing at a knock on her bedroom door. She pushed in the backs of her dangly silver and black earrings, curling leaves and broken hearts twinkling in her ears, and unlocked the door. Andy poked his head in as she pulled her hair up into a French Twist and smiled at him He looked at his sister with a certain amount of pride. She was wearing a black halter with a silver pin at the bottom of the low v-neck. Silver ivy curled around a cracked black heart in the center of the trinket. Black heels with silver-satin finishing hugged her feet. A purse with matching ivy/broken heart designs completed the outfit.

"And the beautiful princess was kidnapped by the evil sorcerer, seduced by his magic and blinded by spells…" Andy intoned ominously, breaking up the moment. She gave him a look.

"Thank you for the compliment," she said, ignoring the majority of his comment. He snorted.

"I thought you disliked him. He came into my room, Cait."

"So he's a little nosy. And arrogant. But I'm both and you still love me." She looked at him and put down her eyeliner, sweeping him into a hug. "Or you wouldn't be in here, haranguing me."

He struggled out of her grasp, but he was smiling. He gave her a look. "Just be careful, okay? We both know how a nice person can choose the wrong person. Don't make the same mistake dad did."

"I'm not a pushover like dad was," she said, anger creeping into her voice as she dropped the eyeliner into her purse with her phone, keys, and wallet. She clipped on a matching anklet, bracelet, and necklace. No sunglasses tonight. She sighed, changing the topic. "I miss New York's shopping. You could find matching accessories so easily. And for so cheap half the time, if you knew where to look…"

Andy snorted. "You're such a girl, sometimes." He said with a chuckle. She ruffled his hair.

"So, are you going to be going out anytime soon?" she teased. Andy stopped, embarrassed. Neither of them could really blush, but they knew each other well enough to notice the slight pink tinge that came to the other's cheeks when they were embarrassed enough. She gave him a speculative look. "I was joking, but you're hiding something." Her eyebrows furrowed, and then she grinned evilly. "You like someone, don't you!"

Her brother opened his mouth to argue, but before he could, there was a knock at the front door. He grinned and ran to open it. Caitlyn sighed, fixed her eye shadow, checked herself in the mirror, and followed her brother.

"I swear, if you hurt her I'll kill you," Andy was saying conversationally when she walked into the room. Kyoya was blinking at him in surprise, and Caitlyn barely stifled a laugh.

"I'll… keep that in mind," Kyoya replied, obviously bemused. Caitlyn snickered slightly; she couldn't help it. Andy turned to look at her faster that Kyoya registered the noise, and fled the room with a chaste jump-up kiss on the cheek and a whispered "Have fun!". Kyoya's head snapped up to look at her, and he froze. His whole body seemed to forget itself, his mouth opening slightly. Caitlyn was sure it was as close to his jaw dropping as it would ever get, and grinned with pleasure. She took the time to look at his outfit; black designer jeans, a white dress shirt and a sport jacket. His eyes raked over her twice, making her skin heat, before his brain seemed to work again. He straightened, then offered her his arm.

"Shall we?" he asked. Caitlyn rolled her eyes.

"Yo, Andy, get your butt back in here and lock the door," she called in English. She opened the door and bowed mockingly for Kyoya to go first. He glared at her, but left the apartment, pausing to wait as she pulled the door in behind her. He helped her into the limo, then followed suit. "I know they had to find classes for me quickly and it was awkward because I came so late, but I don't understand why they put me in English class…"

Kyoya looked at her, choosing not to respond to that particular comment. "You look… nice."

Caitlyn looked at him and laughed. "Surprised I clean up so well?"

"I didn't say it."

She smirked and shoved him lightly, and he smiled in spite of himself. This might be a nice night after all…

**A/N: Here (**.com/03/i/000/a7/79/e91b_) **is sort of what the dress was supposed to look like. It was as close as I could get, but the pin is different obviously. And without those ribbon-y things hanging from the front. Um… idk what to say aside from comments, suggestions, flames all welcome! O, and thanks for reading!**


	32. The First Date: Drawing Boundaries

"So do you have any other talents besides being a stalker?" Caitlyn said teasingly. Kyoya chuckled.

"Define talents."

Caitlyn shrugged. "I don't know. Instruments, hobbies, sports…" She trailed off when he shook his head at all three. "Not even one instrument? Piano? Everyone knows how to play piano."

They were sitting in the corner, windows on both sides. It was a waterfront Italian restaurant, and the long limo ride had been worth it. The appetizers had come and gone, fried calamari and baked clams. Now they were waiting for the main course. When asked how he'd known Italian was her favorite, he'd grinned and said it was in his stalker file. Caitlyn had tried not to be creeped out by that and failed. It was a nice restaurant though, all red curtains and pillars. And the food was delicious.

Kyoya chuckled again. "No, Tamaki's the pianist. He's rather good, truthfully. Hikaru and Kaoru play guitar and base, respectively. They both know how to play either instrument for the sake of their act, but of course each has one that they're more comfortable with. They tried talking the hosts into learning other instruments so we could start a band, but Haruhi and I declined."

"Mori-Senpai and Huni-Senpai?"

"I think they convinced Mori-Senpai to learn drums. Huni-Senpai, I'm not sure. I think they put him on tambourine." They both chuckled at that, then Caitlyn narrowed her eyes at him.

"You're changing the subject," she said. Her face lit for a moment then, temporarily blinding him. "Can you sing?" Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "I bet you _can_, can't you? The club should have a day as a rock band."

Kyoya looked at her. "Even if I could sing…" He paused. "You can sing."

Caitlyn shrugged. "Sort of. I'm good at imitating other people's voices, but I have no personal talent. I can sing Hips Don't Lie and sound just like both Shakira and Wyclef Jean, but I can't sing it myself." Her eyes brightened again, a little more evilly this time. "Still, we could do a duet."

Kyoya was saved from responding from this when the waiter presented their dishes; linguine with seafood in white sauce for Kyoya, gnocchis in red sauce for Caitlyn. The waiter refilled their water glasses and disappeared.

"So what about you?" Kyoya asked.

"Swimming, skating, singing, anything art related… I have a surprisingly well-stocked arsenal of pointless, unfounded talents."

"Like lock picking and thievery."

"Precisely." She gave him a beaming smile, and he stared at her for a few moments, stunned again. He cursed himself mentally.

"So… ah, anything else?"

Caitlyn paused to take a bite of her food, looking away and thinking. Kyoya took the moment to admire the slope of her neck where it met her shoulders, the line of her collar… rather low, now that he thought about it…

"Like I said, voice imitation." He looked up at her face sharply, trying to keep his mask in place.

_Since when do I admire that particular part of a young woman so blatantly?_ he asked himself. He took a bite of his food to cover his reaction. If Caitlyn had noticed, she didn't respond to it. "Would you grant me a demonstration?"

"Of who?"

Kyoya paused, thinking. "Tamaki?"

Caitlyn bit her lip, considering. "It's harder when I don't try it that often. Tamaki I haven't practiced much." She cleared her throat. "Ha… Har…" She cleared her throat again, and swallowed, while Kyoya looked on with a certain amount of bemusement. "Haruhi, father will protect you!"

The perfect intonation of Tamaki's protect-the-damsel-in-distress voice startled real laughter out of Kyoya. Caitlyn beamed at him. "Do go on," he forced out, still laughing.

"Tamaki, you're not my father." Haruhi's voice sprung from Caitlyn's mouth like magic. "Mommy, our daughter is being mean!"

Kyoya had subsided into chuckling, but Caitlyn wasn't finished.

"How many times have I told you not to call me Mommy, Tamaki? Furthermore, considering you're dating Haruhi, don't you find it disturbing at all that you're cheating on your wife with your daughter?"

Kyoya blinked, startled, at the sound of his voice coming from Caitlyn's full lips. He did not point out that the fact that his voice had come so easily from her lips implied she had practiced it often.

"Yeah Tono," Kaoru's voice said.

"You're such a pervert."

"You distinguish the voices," Kyoya said thoughtfully. Kaoru's was slightly softer than Hikaru's, the way she'd spoken. Caitlyn shrugged.

"They're different people," she said. It was the second time she'd said that to him.

"Caitlyn?" Haruhi's voice called from behind Kyoya. There was a certain amount of confusion in it. Kyoya started, surprised.

"You're a ventriloquist too?" he asked. Caitlyn's eyes were wide.

"That wasn't me."

"Kyoya? And… Mommy _does_ have a mistress!" Tamaki's voice switched from confused to delighted in a heartbeat. Kyoya blinked, realizing that Caitlyn couldn't know about how Tamaki loved to use that particular word in terms of their 'relationship', and turned in his seat to see Tamaki and Haruhi approaching from across the tables.

"What are you two doing here?" Caitlyn asked. Haruhi shrugged, the gauzy cap sleeves of her blue dress fluttering.

"Tamaki wanted Italian."

"Don't you like Italian?" Tamaki asked, distressed. He grabbed Haruhi around the waist in the process, white sport jacket fluttering behind him from the sudden movement. Haruhi shrugged again.

"It's food. I can't like or dislike everything the restaurant serves." He still looked upset, so she favored him with a small smile. "The food was very good, Senpai." Tamaki beamed.

"I presume you finished eating, then," Kyoya said. They nodded. "Rather early dinner."

"We were planning on watching a movie," Tamaki said offhandedly, looking at Kyoya strangely.

"I don't know how we didn't notice you," Haruhi said thoughtfully. "I was on my way back from the restroom when I saw you, and Tamaki had paid and was coming across…" Tamaki was grinning at Kyoya now, violet eyes twinkling mischievously.

"_Amoureux, mon ami_?" he asked. Kyoya shot him a warning glance. Caitlyn snickered, and Haruhi looked a little confused, but remained silent. Tamaki looked down at the brunette. "Well, _mon cherie_, let's leave our friends to their dinner. Have a wonderful night." He winked at them and turned, his arm still hooked around Haruhi's waist and therefore dragging her away.

"Bye, Haruhi," Caitlyn called, barely stifling laughter. "… and Tamaki." Haruhi attempted to turn and waved in response, Tamaki fluttering his fingers over his shoulder teasingly as their friends disappeared out the door. Kyoya seemed to be pouting somewhat… or at least as close as he could come to it. She snickered again. "_Amouruex, mon ami_?"

"You refused to tell me the significance of the word," Kyoya said haughtily. Caitlyn laughed, and they ate in comfortable silence for a while, just looking at each other and the view out the window. When they were both almost finished, he decided to change the subject. "Is the food to your satisfaction? It looks delicious."

Caitlyn smirked, not fooled at all, but let it go. "It's perfect," she said, amusement still in her voice. Her eyes twinkled dangerously. "Would you like a taste?" She speared the last one on her plate and brought it to his lips, which he opened unthinkingly.

He didn't know what it was about the gesture that made his heart race. Maybe it was because it suggested intimacy. Maybe it was simply because it was thought of as intimate when you saw people do it on television, but either way meeting her eyes across the table with her fork in his mouth sent something shocking up his spine. He repressed a shiver, and he could see her shift slightly. He cleared his throat.

"Um… dessert or check?"

"What time is it?" she asked thoughtfully. He looked at his watch.

"Eight fifty-seven."

"Check," she said decisively. Kyoya raised an eyebrow, but did as she asked. She obviously had something planned.

* * *

"Would you hold still?" she asked for the tenth time, laughing. Kyoya sighed.

"I have to turn the pages to read." He was attempting to decipher one of Poe's more famous pieces. Caitlyn didn't have any Japanese books in her room, but he figured it didn't matter; good practice for English next semester.

"You don't have to move your head to read. That was the whole point of you reading."

"I thought you didn't want me to get bored."

"That too," she said, erasing something. Kyoya was sitting on one end of her couch, reading a book, while she sat on the other side and faced him, sketchbook on her knees, toes tucked underneath his leg to keep warm. Kyoya wasn't sure whose idea this relatively intimate position was, but he wasn't complaining. He might have preferred her legs _in_ his lap, but beggars couldn't be choosers.

"I also thought you didn't need the person's face to draw them." Caitlyn shrugged, not moving her eyes from the paper.

"Not usually. It looks better when I do, though. I figured I had you for the night, right?"

Kyoya laughed, a sound Caitlyn was beginning to like. "I believe I was the one who claimed _your_ night." He looked up at her in mock horror. "Or are you actually _enjoying_ yourself with me?"

"Don't move," was all she said. "I just need to fix your glasses."

He shifted back into position and made a show of remaining there. She rolled her eyes at him, but she was smiling. She took a deep breath and blew away the rest of the eraser shavings.

"Done." She carefully ripped along the perforated line of the page and offered it to him, and he put aside the book to take it. His hand brushed hers as he took it, and their eyes met for a moment before she broke contact and pulled away. His eyebrow rose as he looked down at the picture. His mouth was set in an imperious, stubborn line, but his eyes glinted mischievously as if he was pretending to be conceited. Her signature coiled in the bottom left hand corner, above the date.

"You're very talented." He moved to hand it back to her, but she shook her head.

"I can draw another one," she said casually. "You keep it." Something warm expanded in his chest, and he tucked the page away into the inside of his jacket.

"Thank you."

She grinned another blinding smile. "No problem." A glance to the clock forced her to stretch and rise. "It's ten-thirty, and Tamaki's dragging us off early tomorrow to god knows where. Get out of my house."

She grinned playfully at him, and Kyoya yawned reflexively and stood. They looked at each other for a few more moments. "Caitlyn…" She looked at him expectantly. "I had a… wonderful time tonight." Kyoya was surprised to discover he was telling the truth.

"I had a nice time too," Caitlyn said, sounding just as surprised.

Kyoya paused. Should he push it? "Nice enough to do it again?"

Her mouth turned up at the corner. "I think I'd like that." She tilted her head to the side, thinking. "Lunch next Friday?"

Kyoya wanted to tell her that was too long away, but he just nodded and stepped outside. She looked up at him, smiling, and he leaned against the outside of the doorframe, his face moving closer to hers. Just a few inches…

"Goodnight, Kyoya," she said quietly.

"Goodnight…" he said, looking into those bottomless mahogany eyes. Just a few inches…

And his nose would have been hit by the door. There was a barely audible laugh on the other side of the door, as the lock clicked. His driver was snickering as he opened the limo for him, but Kyoya ignored him. He wasn't going to let it ruin his night.

He watched her wave and smirk from the window as the car pulled away, and waved back until he realized she couldn't see him through the tinted glass. He put his hand in his lap, feeling like an idiot for the first time in a long time. After a while, he smiled sardonically.

"_Amoureux_…"

**A/N: XD Well… that was sufficiently fluffy. Comments, suggestions, flames all welcome! Or rather encouraged. Begged for...? T.T**


	33. Thawing the Ice

**A/N: Warning: this is kind of a filler. I have no ideas. If you would like to suggest some to me though, that would be awesome! XD If you dislike fillers don't bother reading. Sorry for the crappiness. (Oh and if you guys thing that me not responding to comments means I don't read them, that's not true! T.T People said Haruhi was being OOC and I realized she wasn't even really in the chapter there; she was just a plot device. And then I was like, what the hell am I **_**doing**_** then? Haruhi's supposed to be central to the story! So I brought her back into this chapter, XD. Oh, and people wanted Caitlyn to meet Ranka. Idk how I'll swing that but I'll try. XD I ask for reviews and suggestions and stuff because I want my stories to be better, and I try to listen and fix any issues. I just don't respond to every comment directly. In any case, thanks so much for the feedback.)**

"Ice skating?"

"In the summer?" The twins' whining had a certain amount of logic behind it. Of course, it was simply due to the face that they'd wanted to watch a movie and lost the vote, not to mention the fact that Kaoru wouldn't be able to do anything but watch their stuff, but Haruhi could see where they were coming from.

"It'll be fun!" Tamaki cried. "Right Haruhi?"

"I can't skate," she deadpanned. Tamaki pouted in the corner as she pulled the laces on her skates tighter. They'd rented skates and were now going to attempt to brave the ice. Haruhi thought it was just asking for trouble, but she didn't really care either way. A movie or skating, it was all the same to her. Although a movie would require a lot less effort on her part… and probably injuries…

"Oh, come on. Skating is fun!" Caitlyn said, grinning. "Did you know Ouran has a skating team? I'm going to join next year."

"Won't that interfere with swimming?" Haruhi asked.

"No Haru-chan, they're at different times. I think swimming is spring and summer, and skating is late fall and winter, ne Takashi?"

"Hai," Mori said in his typical stoic manner.

Haruhi sighed. "I don't know why I let you people-" She looked like she would have said more, but Tamaki grabbed her around the waist and onto the ice. Caitlyn watched the hosts with a certain amount of amusement. She yawned hugely and tightened her last strap, heading out onto the ice herself. She skated around Haruhi in a circle, grinning evilly as the girl wobbled. She snickered as Haruhi windmilled ineffectively and fell backwards, spinning across the ice. Haruhi glared up at her.

"Are you going to help me?" she demanded. Caitlyn chuckled.

"Where's your knight in shining armor?"

"The twins said something and he ran after them," Haruhi grumbled. Caitlyn snickered and helped her up. They turned to see Huni flying across the ice towards them, a lollipop hanging out of his mouth.

"I wanted cake but Takashi said I couldn't eat cake if I was skating," Huni said in response to Caitlyn's raised eyebrow. The tall girl shook her head.

"I don't suppose you've heard of oral fixation?" she asked, half-joking and shaking her head. There was a dark chuckle from behind her.

"I'd considered it," Kyoya said, sliding around to her side. Huni looked at them confusedly.

"What's that?" Huni asked. The two of them looked at each other, then smirked simultaneously and looked away. Caitlyn caught Haruhi reflexively as the girl wobbled again.

"Nothing," Caitlyn said with a smile. It turned to a smirk as she considered the rink. "Anyone wanna race me?" Her words met silence. "What?"

"I don't think racing you is a good idea, Cait-chan."

"At least, not in the sports you excel at," Kyoya clarified for the smaller, older boy. Huni nodded vigorously, and Caitlyn sighed dramatically.

"Just because I won once…" she muttered. "You people are such chickens."

"Can I sit down?" Haruhi asked. Caitlyn's head snapped around as Haruhi's shoulders disappeared from beneath her arm. Tamaki had dragged her away. She sighed and set herself to practicing. It wasn't like she had anything more interesting to do.

* * *

Haruhi looked up at Tamaki wryly. He was going on about how sorry he was for abandoning her, but those terrible twins had been insulting her honor or some other nonsense like that. She wasn't really listening, to tell the truth; more enjoying the feeling of floating effortlessly across the ice, of being in Tamaki's arms. Somewhere across the rink he trailed off and looked down at her with a beaming smile.

"But you're having fun, aren't you?" he prompted. Haruhi smiled indulgently. A while ago she would have probably responded with a biting comment, but spending so much time with the blond host had taught her that, in a one-to-one situation, it was easier to just smile and nod.

"Yeah." Tamaki beamed and spun her. She squeaked. "Senpai!"

"I told you to stop using that," he said offhandedly, pulling her back in a little too close for her personal comfort. She blushed marginally and concentrated on not falling over.

"Why do you care what I call you?"

"Yes, why indeed! What's in a name?" Tamaki's eyes started shining as he recited some Shakespeare verse about a name and roses. Haruhi ignored this as well, settling for looking up at him, the planes of his face.

She'd never really thought about dating. The concept simply wasn't important to her. School had eclipsed everything else in her life before she'd entered Ouran; friends, appearance, a social life… She'd been happy enough, in any case. Or at least she'd told herself as much. Not that it had mattered. Even if she had admitted to herself that she'd been less than happy where her social life was concerned, the point would have been brushed aside; something to worry about and never take action on. Her goal was to become a lawyer, follow her mother's path. A social life wasn't a part of that path, or at least, not central to it. So she'd thought, but Haruhi knew that with the host club, nothing is ever what people think it is. They had a way of twisting you around until you didn't know which way was up, until it didn't matter. You could forget yourself sometimes in the world they lived in. Yet, it was good to let go sometimes, good to be able to forget about everything… in a bizarre sort of way.

Tamaki cleared his throat, catching her attention again. She blinked at him. "What?"

He pouted. "Weren't you listening to me?" Haruhi shrugged, and she had the feeling he would have disappeared into his corner of woe if he wasn't the only thing holding her up. His eyes began to sparkle then. "Were you daydreaming?" The girl remained silent, barely restraining the urge to roll her eyes. "About me?"

Haruhi blushed. "No."

Tamaki beamed, the pure wattage making her blink. "You were! You _were_! I thought so! You were staring at me with that adorable vacant expression and-"

"Senpai," she hissed. Tamaki paused and looked at her blushing face.

"Oh, did I embarrass you?" he asked archly.

"No, just-"

"Ah, Haruhi, you're so adorable…"

The girl sighed and gave up, smiling a little in spite of herself. He might be an idiot, but he was her idiot. And, once in a while, he was right. Partially. Because she definitely hadn't been daydreaming about _him_.

And she'd never done it before, either. Ever. She'd never looked at the golden sun shining off the water and thought of a young man standing in a water fountain, or watched the rain fall and wonder if it was predicted to thunderstorm mostly out of fear but partially because she knew if it was on the news as a thunderstorm or if a certain someone had seen anything resembling lightning she could be expecting a knock any second, or-

"Haruhiiiiiiiiii, you don't need to daydream about me when I'm right here you know!"

"I was thinking about my grocery shopping list, Senpai," she deadpanned, lying easily.

His subsequent whining was audible over by Kaoru, watching the bags on the other side of the rink. She rolled her eyes and sighed heavily, spotting Kyoya watching them with a wide smirk on his face. He flagged Caitlyn down as she sped by him at blinding speed, and she skidded to a stop. Her eyes followed his signal, and she locked eyes with Haruhi, grinning. The brunette shrugged helplessly in response.

"Don't be so overdramatic." Kyoya snickered and held up a hand to Caitlyn, seemingly counting something off. _Five, four..._

"But you're so mean to-"

_Three..._

"I'm tolerating your nonsense, aren't I?"

"_MOMMY_!"

_Oh, that's... _Her thought was cut off as she was dragged across the ice. Caitlyn was practically dying of laughter.

_Mother... what have I gotten myself into?_

**A/N: Like I said, this was just a fluffy filler, XD. Suggestions are **_**direly**_** needed! Pleeease? **


	34. Cloistered Tensions:::Warning: LONG

**A/N: Ok so this is also fillery because A) people wanted more Caitlyn/Kyoya, and the twins being in some sort of jam and B) I have no idea where to go with the plot now. So… this is what resulted. XD Hope you enjoy it, anyway. I love anime but I've never been to Japan, so me writing this was… easier. By a lot XD. Just read and you'll get it. Or skip the filler, whatever. :) **

"Kyoya, remind me why I agreed to get on a plane with you when I had no idea where you were taking me?" Caitlyn said conversationally as she stared out of the private jet, a certain amount of venom in her voice.

"You should take a nap, Cait-chan. It's a long flight," Huni called, bouncing into the back cabin from the bathroom with Usa-Chan in hand. Caitlyn furrowed her brows, ignoring the stray thought of why Mori had followed him and why he'd brought the bunny too.

"A long flight to where?" she demanded. "I'm going to some random place for a week and you don't tell me where? You practically kidnapped me!"

"We did no such thing! I asked your aunt if we might take you on a leisurely vacation, to help you to relax. Such a beautiful young woman should not be so antagonized during the summer, no?" Tamaki drawled, one arm around Haruhi. Haruhi glared at him.

"And how did you get my dad to agree to this?" she demanded.

"I didn't," he replied smugly. Haruhi sighed and glanced at Kyoya, who smirked and didn't respond.

"Without him even knowing where we're going?"

"Oh, he knows," Kyoya remarked offhandedly, turning a page of his book. Without laptops being allowed on in the plane, he'd settled for trying to read another of Caitlyn's books. Of course, The Vampire Lestat wasn't his first choice of literature, but…

"They're plotting against us," Caitlyn whispered conspiratorially, well in the volume range of the boys on the plane. Haruhi's lip twitched in spite of herself. "Quick; I'll keep them busy while you sneak into the cockpit and take over."

"How would I do that?" the brunette demanded derisively. "And Huni-Senpai and Mori-Senpai would be able to restrain you easily."

Caitlyn raised an eyebrow, then sighed dramatically. "Ye of little faith," she drawled in English. Haruhi smiled a little; she knew that phrase.

"Hey, why are you-"

"-always switching languages on us?"

"It's not like we can understand English," the twins piped in. They had been sharing Hikaru's iPod with a splitter, the older twin finding the large sound-blocking type of headphones more satisfying than those of the normal variety.

"What, got tired of the overplayed pop music?"

"Ran out of battery."

"And it's not overplayed pop music!"

Catalin snickered. "And anyway, Haruhi understood that."

"So?" they chorused.

"So don't whine out of jealousy," she goaded. The other hosts turned to watch the show.

"It's not jealousy."

"We're perfectly capable of-"

"-conversing in English-"

"-if we wanted to."

"But we shouldn't have to, because people in Japan speak Japanese," they finished together, pulling down one eyelid on the outside end, symmetrically, and sticking their tongues out. Caitlyn had to respect their coordination, if nothing else.

"English is my native language, and it would do you well to get a little practice in. Furthermore, owning an international fashion business as you do, shouldn't you be more fluent in other languages?" she countered.

"We're fluent enough."

Caitlyn turned to Kyoya suddenly, and he gave her a look that obviously said 'leave-me-out-of-this'. She ignored this. "The place we're going to – do people speak English?"

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "Well, yes, but I assumed you would be willing to-"

"Alright, I bet you can't survive the trip speaking nothing but English!" Caitlyn said triumphantly. The twins snorted.

"You're on." They looked around. "Anyone else in?"

Huni looked between Tamaki, who didn't speak, and Mori, who remained stoic, then shrugged and shook his head. The twins shrugged back.

"Alright, fine." They looked at her with a grin. "What do we get if we win?"

Caitlyn smiled sweetly back. "I'll teach you how to pick locks." The twins' eyes lit up, and she grinned evilly. "And if I win…?"

They looked at each other, then back at her. "Pick of anything from the fall line, unreleased."

Her eyes glistened. "Any New York girl can appreciate that. You've got a deal."

* * *

Kyoya looked down at Caitlyn's sleeping form with a slight smirk. The girl was snoring faintly, totally inaudible if the plane had been in motion, however now that they'd landed in New York…

The rest of the host club had gotten off the plane already, most betting that any girl dating Kyoya would probably have similar waking habits. He sincerely hoped they were wrong, however he supposed it was his "job" now. He was hoping that the news that he'd brought her back to the place where she'd been born would brighten her spirits a little, however.

"Caitlyn," he murmured, reaching down to touch her shoulder. "Cait-"

His voice was cut off as he found himself on the floor of his airplane, her forearm braced across his throat, sleep still crusted into the corners of her eyes. He choked for a second before she got her bearings and scrambled off of him, holding a hand down wordlessly. If there was a pink tinge to her cheeks, well… he couldn't be sure in the lighting on the plane.

"Where are we?" she demanded, and he smiled slightly.

"Go take a look. I'm almost positive you'll recognize it at once."

Her eyes darkened suspiciously. "You didn't."

He smiled innocently at her in response, adjusting his glasses. "I didn't do what?"

She stared at him for a few more seconds before running out to the exit, her boots clanking on the metal staircase. He eyed her shoulder-bag carefully as he considered the inside of the plane. If he left it there she was liable to be annoyed with him, but he couldn't see himself bringing it down. Sighing, he picked it up and hooked it over his right shoulder, trying to avoid her temper winning out. A large part of the point of this trip was centered around her. Of course, he had ulterior motives, namely pulling rank on her school to her a few documents, but…

He sighed and gave the inside of their aircraft one last sweep with his eyes before ducking under the doorframe and stepping down the ladder. The view when he looked down, however, stopped him in his tracks.

Caitlyn was livid.

"What's wrong, Cait-chan?" Huni asked, worried. Her jaw twitched, but she didn't respond.

"Caitlyn…?" Haruhi intoned. Kyoya adjusted his glasses and continued down the stairs, watching the girl's tense frame. The hosts stared at her silently.

"How many of you knew where we were going?" she demanded. "Just the older students?"

Huni nodded, the rest of the club following his lead. Her eyes darkened.

"But who's idea was this?"

Silence. Not a single word. The girl's sunglasses-donned eyes travelled scathingly over the assembled hosts, her jaw tighter than the cap on a container of liquid nitrogen. Kyoya approached calmly from behind, handing Caitlyn her bag wordlessly.

"Mine," he said. He watched as several emotions flitted across her face, fighting for purchase on the field. Anger warred with pain as depression moved in from the side, and he observed it all silently, waiting for her response. When she didn't say anything he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, crossing his arms halfway through his speech. "I can't win with you, can I? I was hoping a trip to New York would please you, but it seems to have only achieved the opposite goal. What is it that you want from me? You never told us anything about the circumstances of your departure from the city. How were we supposed to know coming here would cause you such discomfort? You seem to assume that our money will garner us precognitive abilities or some such drivel, but it's hardly fair to expect us to know exactly what will or will not please or displease you."

Caitlyn looked at him for a few more moments. "Where are we staying?" she demanded finally.

"The Michaelangelo Hotel, at-"

"I know where the Michaelangelo is, Kyoya," she said, turning to look at the limo fluttering Ootori flags waiting for them on the asphalt.

"My apologies," he said, lip twitching as she ignored this, heading towards the vehicle. He glanced at the rest of the group. His eyebrow seemed to raise of its own accord as he stared at their shocked faces. "What?"

"You… you deactivated her. Like the bomb squad! Like S.W.A.T.!" Tamaki hissed, going on in fevered whispers. Kyoya tuned the rest out, instead glancing at the other hosts, eyes settling on Haruhi.

"That's not what's surprised you, Haruhi," he said, adjusting his glasses and glancing at the girl. She looked at him for a second, then smiled slightly.

"You changed."

He raised an eyebrow. "I did, did I?"

"Before Caitlyn, iff any of us had reacted that way you wouldn't have been half as gentle, probably saying something about the cost of getting here or something. But you didn't say anything that even suggested that she was being ungrateful," she said contemplatively. "Just that it was unfair to be so angry."

"Yeah, Caitlyn hates to admit she's wrong;-"

"-she's too proud. But that was the best-"

"-you could have gotten out of her-"

"-pretty much ever."

"You were nice-"

"-and you knew it would have that effect."

The twins looked at him with identical grins. "Didn't you?"

Kyoya adjusted his glasses. "You're being absurd. Now, I am going to get into our limo so we may be on our way, because I'm sure us dallying on the tarmac is doing nothing for her temper. I'm sure you will all follow our example."

"Kyo-chan's right," Huni said, looking at his cousin.

"Hai."

Kyoya walked to the limo, sliding in next to the girl staring broodingly out the window with the grace of a ballet dancer. His beau didn't even note the movement, even as the driver who had opened the door for him slid into the front and headed off of the airstrip. Kyoya looked out the window on the other side.

"I'm rather disappointed at the moment, frankly. I would have rather liked to stay at the Plaza. A world renowned hotel, and right in the middle of the city…"

"It's condos now," the girl said flatly. "Or something of the like. Of course the rent must be ridiculous if its apartments…"

"Nothing we couldn't afford."

"Who's we? I couldn't afford it," she snorted, eyes still glued to the windowpane. Kyoya sighed and looked at the hand that wasn't supporting her chin, resting in her lap. Taking a chance he slipped his own into it, pulling it into his lap instead. Her eyes flashed to him as she stiffened and pulled away, but she shook her head at the question in his eyes. "No, okay?"

Kyoya sighed. "Why not?"

"Because it's personal, alright?!"

He remained silent at her outburst, simply watching her with a raised eyebrow. She glared at him for a few more seconds before breaking down with a sigh. She looked at his hand dubiously for a few more moments before taking it like a ticking time bomb. He ignored the surge of something he couldn't place in his chest.

"I don't… It doesn't matter, anyway."

"It does matter, if it's troubling you this much."

"I'm fine."

Kyoya snorted, an oddly undignified noise for his personality. "You are not fine. You were absolutely livid at the prospect of spending a week here. You were born here. You lived the majority of your life here. There are over eight million people in this city. Are you afraid to run into someone? Do you want to avoid a certain area? What is it?"

"It's this whole fucking city!" she snarled, startling him. She took at deep breath and closed her eyes. "Sorry."

"It's fine."

"No, no…" she closed her eyes. "It's not fine. It's really… It's not fair of me to be angry at you, you're right. You didn't know. It's just… my parents died here. And I… I lived my whole life here, you're right. I suffered my whole life here. And in that time I have walked every avenue, been to every museum, experienced everything any tourist wants to look at and more. I know this city's roots, know the beat of its pulse, can recognize the roar of it's blood rush from miles away. And it's… it's painful to be anywhere near it."

Kyoya blinked at the sudden confession, trying to memorize the words. A phrase caught his attention. "Suffered?"

She smiled wryly. "Leave it to you to catch that." She shook her head. "I'm not talking about it, alright?"

He looked at her for a few more moments, before inclining his head ever so slightly. "Fair enough."

"Thank you," she said, squeezing his hand. Suddenly, she leaned in and pecked him on the cheek, making him jump. The jolt spread along his skin like wildfire, and a slight tinge colored his abnormally pale skin as he colored. She giggled. "Blushing, Kyoya? Really?"

"Don't be absurd," he replied, but his heart wasn't in it. It was too busy melting into a puddle on the floor of the limo. Not that he would ever admit to such a ridiculous concept.

_I like this girl,_ he realized with a jolt, face carefully neutral as he tried to gather his thoughts after this stunning epiphany. _I really, truly hold feelings for her._

"Hey, what are we covering while we're here, hm?" she asked, and Kyoya blinked at her.

"Hm?" he asked. She snickered.

"Pay attention, Kyoya. What are you guys looking to see?"

He shrugged. "I've been to New York, but I suppose the usual."

She made a face. "Don't be boring." Her eyes lit up. "While we're here, let me show you guys around. My city, my tour."

Kyoya looked at her with a certain amount of amusement. _She must be bi-polar_. He hid a smirk. "Alright, whatever you say."

_Although,_ he thought to himself as he watched her stare out the window again, _you really haven't said very much of what I was looking to hear._

* * *

"So this was a castle?" Tamaki asked, wandering through the Unicorn Tapestry room of the Cloisters with an awed look on his face. Caitlyn smiled slightly, shaking her head.

"Not really. Cloister, as in… religious edifice, ne Kyoya?" Caitlyn said, turning around to an empty pocket of air. Her brow furrowed as she looked around, and Tamaki's eyes travelled back to the tapestries.

"Such beautiful work," he called, chest swelling. The hosts shushed him, and he grinned sheepishly, realizing the echoes of his voice were still ringing in the stone chamber. "Gomenasai."

They'd been there for two days, during which Caitlyn had taken them to Serendipity's, a walk-by of the Plaza due to construction and the current state of affairs inside the building, all of the shops along 5th avenue following the Plaza visit including everything from the Disney store to FAO Schwartz, the Natural History museum, and the Empire State building. The kicker for most of the club was that the majority of the trip seemed to be on foot at Caitlyn's insistence, stating that if she was going to give a tour they were going to talk like real New Yorkers. Besides, she'd reasoned, the traffic in New York was slower than a snail's pace. Tamaki agreed wholeheartedly with all of this, wanting to submit himself fully to a New Yorker's lifestyle. And who wouldn't want to ride the subway?

Well, besides Kyoya.

The hosts had been in the Cloisters for a few hours now, admiring the artwork. Caitlyn had given them a full tour, babbling proudly about the gardens and so on as she moved through the structure. Even the architecture seemed to bring forth a stream of facts and smiling memories. Tamaki had never seen the girl so happy, and he was equally delighted to listen. They were supposed to go to the Met and do a full sweep of all the best places in Central Park the next day. Her only response to their complaints about trailing through a park several square miles large was "wear comfortable shoes if it's an issue".

"Where's Kyoya?" the girl asked, and he whipped around.

"Mommy's gone?" he demanded. The girl shrugged. "Mommy can't be gone!"

"Shut up, Tono!" the twins hissed. Tamaki colored.

"Gomenasai."

"I think he went to the bathroom," Haruhi said, not even looking away from the wall. They way her eyes were glued to the fabric, you'd think the unicorn was about to leap off of the fabric with the hunters in quick pursuit.

"We think, we don't know?" Tamaki asked, mildly panicked. There was no response as the hosts looked at each other. The twins and Caitlyn locked eyes before turning to Tamaki, who was already rushing out of the room.

"Crap," all three of them said at the same time. The group moved out of the tapestry chamber in pursuit of the blond as one.

"We should make an announcement at the front," Tamaki said, and Haruhi shot him a look.

"Don't you think you're overreacting? He probably went to the bathroom."

"And what if he didn't?!"

"Senpai, d-"

"Caitlyn, which way is the front desk?"

The girl turned dark eyes shadowed by her sunglasses on him with a certain amount of annoyance, but she pointed down a hall and he followed her direction.

"Do you remember last time?" Haruhi demanded.

Tamaki blinked. "The commoner's market."

"And he said…?"

"That if I ever do that again he's going to take Antoinette and put her in the pound."

The brunette gave him a look and he sighed.

"Don't tell the front desk, then."

Tamaki looked around the stone walls with a certain amount of contemplation. If he knew Kyoya at all there were only a few places he might have wandered off to by himself. The problem was, he didn't know the exhibits well enough to predict where he might have gone…

But someone else did.

"Caitlyn," he called, jogging up to where she was now leading at the front. The girl raised an eyebrow. "Did you call him?"

"Kaoru called him. He didn't pick up."

His brow furrowed. "We should split up." He looked around. "Everyone has their phones, correct?"

"Hai."

"Alright, Caitlyn, you know this building better than we do. Where's Kyoya likely to be?"

The girl's brow furrowed. "Well, he expressed a certain interest in the arms when I was talking to him about the armor they had here. But it's not just in one place, although they do have an exhibit. He'd obviously also heard of the famous unicorn tapestries, but we were already in that room…" She shot the blonde a look. "I really think you're overreacting-"

"Alright, someone should stay in the tapestry room in case he returns."

"I'll go," Haruhi volunteered. Tamaki pouted.

"But I wanted you to come with me."

"I didn't finish," she said stoically, and he barely restrained from retreating into his corner of woe. Still, he managed to stay strong; there was work to be done. He nodded and she wandered off at a leisurely pace.

"Hikaru, Kaoru!" The red-headed boys snapped to attention. "Search the lower levels!"

"Hai!" they ran off in the direction Caitlyn pointed them in with a roll of her eyes.

"Huni-Senpai, Mori-Senpai, please search the upper recesses of the building!"

"Hai, Tama-chan!" Huni called down from atop his cousin's shoulders. Mori set of at a trot down a staircase to the right. Tamaki then turned to face the glowering girl next to him. Her spikeband glistened threateningly in the light streaming in through the windows, and he swallowed slightly.

He and Caitlyn had never really gotten along. There was a darkness behind her, a haunted, hunted feeling that he wanted to brush away. A part of him wanted to help her, like they had so many other girls, but he knew that such an attempt would be futile. Caitlyn was the type of girl who was too proud to accept any help, and too shrewd to be tricked into it. But sitting idly by was not something that Tamaki was comfortable or familiar with, and therefore just being in her presence tended to make him nervous. Like he should be doing something. Like… something was off.

That and there was the general aura of distaste that seemed to emanate whenever she was presented with his face.

"Why am I with you?"

"Because we're going to be checking the places that Kyoya would most likely go. I'm his best friend and you know the layout better than we do." He smiled rather condescendingly, tapping his skull with a finger. "Smart plan, huh?"

Caitlyn didn't respond, simply setting off in one direction. "Alright, let's check the Arms and Armor exhibit then."

"He won't be there," Tamaki said, shaking his head slightly. Caitlyn raised an eyebrow, obviously annoyed.

"How do you know? He expressed interest-"

"Kyoya would like to see the armor, yes, but he wouldn't wander off on his own to look at it. He would know that we would eventually visit the exhibit as a group because it's a topic of interest for more than one host. In fact, I'm sure Mori-Senpai and Huni-Senpai would appreciate the exhibit much more than he would," Tamaki said, shaking his head. "No, if he wandered off on his own it was because he had an interest in something that he thought he couldn't silently wheedle us into visiting or something that he thought he'd be ridiculed for expressing interest in. Which means he's probably in one of the gardens."

Caitlyn snorted. "Kyoya ditching us to wander around the flower gardens? Don't be ridiculous."

Tamaki shook his head. "He's not going to be there."

Caitlyn ignored him, walking through the halls much faster than Tamaki was comfortable with. He trotted after her with a certain amount of annoyance building in his chest. Caitlyn might have been dating Kyoya, but she didn't know him very well. As the son of a medical company, he would have probably been interested to see what herbs were growing, and read the plaques to see how, precisely, they had been used. He would have also probably appreciated the brush of fresh air after being dragged around the musty castle for a good hour or two, and perhaps wandered into the rose garden. Kyoya rather enjoyed roses, as his choice of mate could support.

There was something else that bothered him about this girl. Something about the way she'd just shoved her way into their lives like she belonged there. Not that he minded that much, of course. Any new friend was a good thing. Tamaki liked to make new friends; it was part of his personality. But ever since she'd arrived Haruhi had spent quite a bit of time with her, not to mention the twins. Despite their differences the twins had always been fiercely loyal to him, hence the title of Tono, their feudal lord. They might think him a baka but they would follow him to the end, as proven by their total unquestioning execution of any orders given them during the formation of a plan or in the process of a mission. And while today's little disaster had proven that they were still loyal, they had also acquired a certain affection for the dark girl that tugged at him. Huni seemed to like the girl well enough too, paying a fair amount of attention to her. Granted, it was no more than he gave any of the other hosts, and it was certainly less than he granted certain people, but still… even Mori talked to her. Sort of.

He gave her a overbearing look as they entered the exhibit in question. No Kyoya to be seen anywhere.

"I told you he wouldn't be here!"

"Shut up, baka!" she hissed at him. "This is a museum!" He glared at her.

"I told you!"

"Alright, fine, you told me! So what? There's no way he's wandering around the flower garden! Furthermore, what's the big deal? Kyoya is not a child. He can find his way back to us himself, and if he really is lost or something then he could call our cellphones! There are what… seven of us to call? What's the big deal?"

"Don't you care where he is? What if he fell down the stairs and hurt himself, or went into a room he wasn't supposed to and got locked in, or-"

"You're such a baka! Why do they all listen to you?" she snarled. "Some king you are! You're an imbecile!"

"I'm Kyoya's best friend and Haruhi's boyfriend. Neither of them seem to mind me that much!"

Caitlyn laughed derisively. "Oh, but they do. Everyone does. They can't stand your idiocy, but they tolerate it because I admit, you have a few selling points. But so what? The face of an angel and a way with words isn't going to get you through life! Being able to see right through a person's defenses and masks and find who they really are is not a profession! You have charisma and book intelligence so as not to seem completely incompetent, and you know people, you kow personalities, and so they all follow you! But I'm not a dog, and I'm not going to be led around yapping at your feet!"

"Oh, not a dog, are you," Tamaki muttered, turning away. Caitlyn snorted scathingly.

"Oh, too much of a coward to just come out and say it? Come on, let me hear it; I'm a bitch."

"Who do you think you are?" Tamaki demanded, then stopped himself. Caitlyn raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she challenged. Tamaki glared at her and didn't say anything.

"My apologies. One should not speak to a lady as such."

"I'm no lady, _King_. Go on. I'm a bitch, say it."

"You're not-… You try to be. On purpose. You try to hide the fact that you're dying inside with all this bravado, and I'm sorry for all the pain you're in. I'd like to help you, I would. But who do you think you are, coming into-… and monopolizing-… and-…" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Nevermind, we don't have time for this. Just… trust me. Kyoya is in the gardens."

"There are a ton of gardens! There are flowers and herbs and medicinal-" she stopped. "Oh."

Tamaki looked at her, and she blinked back, not saying anything. A slight flush of embarrassment flickered across her face and died halfway through, replaced with feigned arrogance. Tamaki felt relief seep into his frame as he stared down at the girl.

"Well, I suppose looking at the gardens wouldn't hurt," she said carefully, leading him back up through the halls. Tamaki couldn't keep track of all the twists and turns, but before he knew it he was looking out through beautiful archways at a large enclosed garden. Sure enough, there, in the middle, was Kyoya, looking at a certain plant and scribbling down notes in his notebook, a calm for focused expression on his face. A grin broke across the blond's face as he ran through the paths, and Kyoya looked up just in time to brace for impact as Tamaki glomped him.

"MOMMY, DADDY WAS SO WORRIED ABOUT YOU. OUR CHILDREN ARE LOOKING FOR YOU EVERYWHERE, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!?!?!?" he cried shrilly. Kyoya pulled his friend off of him calmly.

"How did you find me?" he asked, not even bothering to ask how he knew where he would be. He was already used to Tamaki's unnerving breakdown of a person's personality. The blond boy sobered immediately.

"Well, Caitlyn was gallant enough to show me the way, although I admit to a certain amount of disagreement…" he trailed off, smiling sheepishly at his friend.

"Enough to explain why she disappeared as soon as she dropped you off here?" the boy asked archly. Tamaki squeaked and turned around, but sure enough the girl was gone.

"She was right there!" he cried. Kyoya twisted his lips.

"I'm sure she was." He sighed. "I suppose we should look for her. You know how she is."

Tamaki paused. He had a feeling he knew exactly where she was, but he didn't say anything to suggest that.

"Call Hikaru and tell him I found you but we lost Caitlyn now. Or Kaoru. Whatever. They'll tell the rest of them. I have to use the bathroom. You look for her in the mean time."

Kyoya nodded and headed off in the opposite direction, and Tamaki watched him go, pulling out a map as soon as he was out of view. Finding his location he traced a path to the illuminated manuscripts. If she wasn't there then he'd check the Arms and Armor exhibit again to see if she was examining the daggers, but he was almost positive she would be where he was looking. Art and literature were Caitlyn's forte; it only made sense that she would be where both were appreciated. And it was only right that he make amends; after all, it was him that upset her.

Sure enough, he soon skidded to a halt in front of a display case and nearly ran into the dark-haired girl. She didn't even look up.

"I was wondering if it would just be you or if Kyoya would get here first… or perhaps together…" She chuckled. "Kyoya probably had the same bet in his mind, although obviously with me in his place."

"_Belles Heures._" he murmured, looking at the case. She smiled wryly.

"Yes." Her hand traced a figure on the glass. "I'm not one for religion, mind, but I figure there must be something out there, you know? I don't think it's the god they think about, just because if the god was nice then life wouldn't be to fucked up. But there's something out there. I refuse to believe it's all random." She sighed. "And these are just beautiful, in any case."

"That they are," he agreed, looking at her. She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"So, are we talking like sane adults now?"

"I suppose."

"And?"

Tamaki paused, then looked at her earnestly. "Something about you sets me off. I'm not quite sure what it is, precisely. Something about your aura, the way…" He paused again.

"You're jealous of me. Monopolizing your friends' time when I just got here." She laughed. "God, how did I not see that before? So stupid of me. Of course I knew I caused you discomfort, but I thought it was just the usual stuff. I'm depressing and all that."

Tamaki blinked at her. "You have a rather stifling presence, yes… jealous? I think not."

"No, you are. You're just as arrogant as me; all of you are. It's the money. It just makes you that way. But Kyoya only ever opened up to one person in the club, and that would be you. Haruhi had him mostly figured out by sheer power of curiosity and observation, but you're not lying when you say you're his best friend." She shrugged. "I was threatened by you too. It's okay."

Tamaki frowned, a crease in his brow. Caitlyn laughed again. "They say that your observant and intelligent nature with personalities and people never extends to yourself. I didn't believe it, but I suppose now I have to." She smirked and stuck out a hand. "Truce, okay?"

Tamaki blinked at the offered hand then smiled brilliantly, shining like the sun in the dark corridor. He took her hand and bowed over it, before pressing his lips to it. "'Tis ungentlemanly to quarrel with a lady."

And so it was that the host club walked in on Caitlyn looking partially livid and partially resigned while Tamaki kissed her hand.

**A/N: Holy shit that's long. O.O I guess I should split it into two but frankly, I'm too lazy. And yeah, I know Tamaki's really OOC here but I realized that they kinda really dislike each other and I never addressed that other than to say that Tamaki's kinda terrified of her and dislikes her presence. I mean I guess he's not that... idk. I can't imagine him getting into an arguement, but it needed to happen. So I guess in general sorry about the whole thing? XD I told you I had no ideas... but there's more to come in NY, if you're okay with the fillery-ness for now. Review and tell me how awful this was though! And sorry, again. T.T**


	35. Pathways of the Mind

**A/N: uhm, "O_O", I didn't really understand ur review XD. Oh, and completeandtotalrandomness; I totally forgot about the challenge! Well we can fix that here. XD sorry to anyone else who noticed that too.**

Caitlyn smiled as they trekked through central park, adjusting her combat boots' laces as the hosts stopped at a water fountain. She'd opted for black shorts and a tanktop, with her usual spikeband. Skull and crossbones dangled from her ears as she looked at the group, adjusting the small Nightmare Before Christmas backpack she'd taken with her on her shoulders. Most of them had been smart enough to dress for the weather but Kyoya of all people was wearing jeans and a black sleeveless button down, and was practically melting from the heat. Mori was next to him in similar attire. She favoured them with a smirk that obviously said 'I told you so'. Kyoya raised an eyebrow in reply: 'What do you mean? I'm fine.'

"Even your eyebrows can't lie to me, _amoureux_," she teased as she walked over. She turned to address Mori as well. "I told you all to bring packs with water…"

"Next time, then," Mori said, voice flat. She had the feeling he was teasing her, but was too surprised that he'd spoken at all to say anything. Kyoya wandered over to casually claim water fountain rights. Not that he needed it, of course.

"They're going to miss you, you know," she said casually, looking at them. Her eyes flitted to the tall senior. "I barely got to know you. I mean what with your taciturnity and all. Your cousin's been rather forward with me though, but of course that's his personality. Not that it's a bad thing… he's sweet. Not that I don't have a general idea of your personality mind. This is coming out wrong."

Mori smiled at her, and she took a deep breath. "Sorry."

"It's fine."

She laughed. "I'm used to people talking back at me. Most of my friends tend to talk a lot. Or they used to, back home." She paused, her brow furrowing. "Here, I mean, I guess. Not that the host club doesn't talk a lot. They do. I just meant… New Yorkers like to talk, and we tend to talk fast. So if there's a pause in the conversation we tend to keep going." She stopped. "And ramble. Sorry. I'm probably boring you."

Mori shook his head, then gave her a contemplative look.

"What?"

He shrugged, and she looked at him confusedly. "Nothing."

Caitlyn opened her mouth to say something but at that moment Huni bounced into her line of sight in a line drive for his cousin. Mori reached out instinctively as Huni jumped up, helping him climb onto his shoulders.

"Aren't you hot carrying him around like that?" she asked.

Huni made a face. "I told Takashi that already. He didn't want me to get tired though, because me being cranky is… well Takashi thinks it's bad."

"You're dangerous, Mitsukuni."

The smaller boy pouted. "But you're wearing long pants and I know you're hot, Takashi."

"I'm fine."

Caitlyn smiled. "So stubborn…"

Huni opened his mouth to say something in response when his eyes settled on a vendor in the corner. "Ice cream!"

"It's expensive," Caitlyn warned. "The prices for food out here are ridiculous."

"How much?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked casually, moving up to the group like lazy cats padding silently through the high afternoon sun.

"Like two fifty or something. Sometimes it's four; like I said, ridiculous."

The twins looked at each other with identical expressions of amusement, and Caitlyn rolled her eyes. "Ah yes, you're all filthy rich. My apologies!"

"I want ice cream!" Huni called.

"Us too," the twins announced. The hosts moved towards the vendor.

"It'll make you more thirsty!" she called. There was no response as Kyoya came up next to her. "No one listens to me."

The young man chuckled in response. "Oh, I was wondering; not to stir trouble or anything of the sort of course-"

"Of course."

"-but didn't you have a bet with the twins about them speaking English all the time or some foolishness like that?"

Caitlyn's eyes widened. "I forgot about that!"

Kyoya chuckled. "I rather thought so."

"Hey, Hikaru, Kaoru!" she called. The twins looked up from their Ben & Jerry's half-baked ice cream confections, linking arms as they walked over.

"Hai?"

"I assume you forgot about our little bet?" she asked. The boys looked at each other as Kyoya adjusted his glasses with a satisfied smirk on his face.

"Oh."

"Yeah, so what about starting now?" the girl challenged. "Unless you want to call it off."

"No, no…" they said in English. The girl smiled triumphantly.

"Perfect," she responded in her native language.

The twins gave her defiant looks as they walked off with their ice cream, Kyoya snickering slightly.

"Now, what do you have riding on this?"

Kyoya smiled innocently. "Whatever are you talking about?"

"Who'd you bet with? Tamaki?"

"I have no recollection of doing any such thing."

"Of course."

Kyoya smirked, but it turned marginally suggestive as they watched the other hosts munch on their ice cream, the happy vendor selling Huni his third while Mori looked at his cousin reproachfully.

"While they're occupied… would you perhaps be willing to…"

"Accidentally wander off?" Caitlyn asked, a look of dry amusement spreading across her face as she considered the dark-haired boy. "Why Kyoya, you couldn't possibly be willing to leave your friends all alone in the middle of a large park in a foreign country that even some natives get lost in."

"Oh, but that's what asking directions is for," the young man said, grinning evilly. Caitlyn favoured him with a similar grin.

"Alright, come on then. There's somewhere I wanted to take you anyway."

She ran off down the path, laughing quietly. He followed her with a certain amount of bemusement in his face. "So you'd been thinking of doing the same thing, then."

"Of course not!" she called over her shoulder as she ran in front of him. He smirked.

"Of course not."

* * *

Mori watched the two disappear silently.

"What is it, Takashi?"

The taller young man looked down at his cousin. "You saw."

Huni shrugged. "Let them go." He grinned. "We'll wait until Tama-chan notices."

"That could take a while."

"Exactly!" Huni said, happy with this conclusion. "Besides, what could happen? I've never seen Kyo-chan so happy. Let them go." Mori smiled slightly.

Yes, nothing could happen when the only two people who could be considered familiar with the territory had disappeared off into the trees, leaving their companions stranded. Mori smiled slightly. No, nothing could happen at all.

* * *

"You can't honestly expect me to jump a fence," Kyoya said flatly. Caitlyn looked over her shoulder at him as she sat on the grey stone, warm from the sun.

"First of all, it's not a fence," she said, sliding off and dropping two inches to the stone outcroppings on the other side. "Second of all, it's not even waist high. And third of all, anyone who's been here's done it."

Kyoya raised an eyebrow at her. "Belvedere Castle must acquire many trespassing criminals, then."

Caitlyn rolled her eyes. "Suit yourself," she said calmly, dropping her backpack behind the short stone wall before making her way effortlessly over the uneven rock formations supporting the gorgeous stone building sitting above Turtle Pond.

They hadn't gotten a call from any of the hosts yet despite being gone for a good five minutes, so Kyoya was under the impression that Tamaki hadn't noticed their absence yet. He was hoping that none of the other hosts brought it to his attention. He was sure Mori had seen them at least, but he highly doubted the tall senior would say anything to jeopardize their time together. Watching the girl disappear beyond his line of sight however, he realized he was being forced into following her and he sat on the stone with a resigned sigh, swinging his legs over the side and walking carefully out on the rocks.

"I have a bad feeling about this," he murmured with a smirk, but she turned and pressed a finger to her lips in response. She was sitting on one of the rock's outcroppings, eyes watching the dozens of turtles basking in the sun along the place where the huge slabs of stone met the water. A few fish made their way lazily through the water, and he took a seat next to her with a fluttering in his… somewhere in his torso.

"I used to come here to think," she all but whispered. "Or when I needed a quiet place to concentrate. Write. Draw." She smiled and watched the sun sparkle off the greenish water, glittering like an emerald sea.

Kyoya watched her expression as melancholy moved across the planes of her face.

"I always thought it would be amazing to come here with someone I…" She paused. "Well, someone. It's always beautiful here."

He forced himself to turn to the pond before them, the various denizens of the city taking their dogs and strollers for a walk, the tourists grinning at finally finding this famous castle after what was probably hours of searching. No one knew how to read a map these days.

"It is," he allowed, surreptitiously sliding an arm around her shoulders. To his surprise she leaned into him, eyes half-closed against the sun.

"I… I wanted to thank you. I left with the intention of coming back. Just to… I don't know. Get some closure. But now I realize I would have never had the courage to do it. I would have chickened out. And then I would have just been walking around with a… I don't know. Something wrong with me." She smiled. "This is my city, you know? My home, my origin. I was born and raised here, and I have the accent and mannerisms to prove it. And if I'd never come back… it would have haunted me."

"That's understandable."

"So… thanks." She smiled. "Guess acceptance is the first step to… whatever it was. You know what I mean."

Kyoya chuckled. "You're usually much more eloquent than this."

Caitlyn giggled in response. "I know. I just feel like a weight's been lifted. It's wonderful."

Kyoya paused, watching her uncharacteristic girly giggling for a few moments before taking a chance and pressing his lips to her temple. She stiffened for a minute before smiling again and burrowing herself into his side.

"Ah, it's too hot for this," she chuckled. "I'm glad the castle's shadow covers us right now, though."

"Hm," he said in agreement, simply enjoying the feeling. Even though he was sweating and it should have been disgusting. Even though his feet hurt from all that walking. Even though they were trespassing.

"You know, this-"

She paused as giggles sounded from behind her, and she began to turn before a voice followed.

"Lizzie, you sure about this?"

The girl in his arms stiffened noticeably.

"Yeah, Cait took me back in eighth grade. We came loads of times after that and no one ever took us in." A smile was apparent in her voice. "She said this would be the perfect place to take someone she was in love with. She was always a romantic at heart."

Kyoya tried not to let himself get excited over this and failed, although not a shred of it showed on his face. Not that Caitlyn was paying attention.

"What are the odds?" she hissed to herself instead.

"You talked to her lately? She calls me, but…" the male who had spoken first replied.

"Sometimes. You know, I think you guys were closer despite the gender thing." The girl sighed. "You know how it is, with her mom and all. She feels awful for being happy about-"

"Liz?" Caitlyn interrupted, forcing a smile and turning. The turtles had begun to slide off the rocks at the disturbance, and she stood carelessly and faced a lanky dirty-blonde with surprise. Kyoya surveyed the scene silently The girl's shorts were a little too short, her tanktop a little low. She certainly wasn't the type of girl he'd assume to be friends with Caitlyn, that much was clear. From what he'd garnered these were friends of Caitlyn's, who she still kept in touch with. They were possibly in a relationship, although she was closer to the male.

That should bother him less.

"_Cait_?" the girl squealed, practically running on the stone. They met halfway with a hug, although Caitlyn obviously felt awkward about the whole thing. Caitlyn opened her eyes mid-hug to see a tall, silver-haired asian boy behind her. A broad smile appeared on her face at the sight of him, and Kyoya could tell it was genuine.

Yes, it should definitely bother him less.

"Kevin!" she squeaked, removing herself from Liz's hug and throwing herself at him. He caught her with a cocky grin, his hug literally sweeping her off of her feet.

"You promised to tell me when you were coming in," he accused with a grin. Kyoya concentrated very hard on following the conversation. He spoke English well enough. He just hadn't had any reason to let the girl know that up until this point.

"Hey, I was going to sneak off when my babysitters weren't looking and call you. I didn't know I was coming," she said, looking up at him earnestly as he placed her back on her feet. "That one over there's too nosy for his own good."

Liz and Kevin turned to Kyoya, who had stood and was in the process of dusting himself off.

"And 'that one' would be…?" Kevin drawled, looking him up and down. "He's too attractive to be a friend, but he doesn't look like your type."

Caitlyn's brow furrowed. "Oddly enough, he's not."

Kyoya smirked, even though he shouldn't have.

"But yeah, he's mine."

And he shouldn't feel smug at her saying that either.

"Yeah, I could tell from the predatory once over he gave me," the boy said with a chuckle. "So what, your rich boyfriend fly you into New York?"

She chuckled. "No, I was kidnapped by the Host Club."

"Oh, that bunch of idiots?" His voice was incredulous, and he eyed Kyoya speculatively. "You're dating… Mori?"

"No, Kyoya."

The boy blinked. "Hate to be so frank in front of your guy…"

"Ah, it's okay. The most you'll get is an eyebrow raise," she said, arm still around Kevin's waist, his still around her shoulders. The sight was still irking the Shadow Lord, even as she winked at him.

"Alright, so I must have missed a phone call because last time I checked, didn't you hate him?"

Kyoya chuckled. "Oh, I knew that already."

Caitlyn grinned innocently. "Nah, last two phone calls I just failed to mention it because I knew you'd torture me about it."

"Oh, good to know."

"So, am I ruining a date?" she asked, eyeing Liz, who was giving Kyoya a speculative once over herself.

Kevin snorted. "Lizzie, you don't mind, do you?"

"Of course not!" the girl said, offended. "We haven't seen her in ages."

The boy turned back to Caitlyn. "Am I allowed to call the rest of the gang?"

She sighed and turned to Kyoya. "Is he?"

Kyoya shrugged. "I see no reason why not." After all, he wanted to hear the end of Liz's previous statement.

"Alright, we can meet and swing down by Union. Crowd into Au Bon Pain and overrun the park. What do you think?" she said, looking at the three people before her. Liz nodded eagerly, and Kevin grinned and pulled out his phone. She raised an eyebrow at Kyoya, who shrugged again. He didn't know the city well enough to suggest anything else.

"Bus or train?" Liz asked. Caitlyn grinned at Kyoya's suddenly stoic face.

"Train. Let's not traumatize the rich boys too much. They're used to the subway."

"Hardly," Kyoya scoffed, but when Caitlyn detached herself from her friend's arm to replace it with his he didn't continue his complaint. "Now, all we have to do is locate Tamaki and the rest of the club…"

**A/N: Okay, so I know this is based off the anime but does anyone else read the manga and notice Mori is talking a **_**lot**_** more lately? I mean in 70 he has a ton of frames, and keeps interrupting Tamaki/Hikaru's rant. But the list thing was cute. XD I can't believe they're ending it though. Or they have to be, since they're cutting out the seniors and chapter 72 said that Music Room 3 was done for good… T.T *cries* Anyhow, moving on to actual stuff, I know that this was ridiculously corny and all but oh well. Next chapter will actually further the plot though, because you'll get to learn a lot more about Caitlyn and stuff. Hope you don't hate me too much for this. And yeah, sorry for the filleryness. Again. T.T**


	36. Uncovering Information

"So," Hani said, smiling over his chocolate cupcake, "You're friends of Cait-chan's?"

The group nodded in varying degrees, and Caitlyn couldn't help but feel a little loved. Even if she was afraid they'd let something she didn't want to slip… well, slip. Kevin sat to the left of the girl, Kyoya to the right. The bespectacled boy was clutching her hand because Kevin had an arm around her shoulders, and she couldn't help but smile at the Demon King; his jealousy was adorable in her opinion. Haruhi watched the whole group with a mildly interested expression across the table from her friend.

"Okay, so you're Hikaru and you're Kaoru?" another more petite Asian boy with delicate features asked. The twins chuckled.

"Nope. Close though, Kai-ku… Kai."

"Ah, damn," he grumbled.

"You almost said 'kun'," Caitlyn teased in a sing-song voice. "Don't forget the bet, you know."

"You're part Japanese too, aren't you?" they asked in response, ignoring the girl. He smiled.

"Yeah."

Lizzie was in the corner talking animatedly to Tamaki at this point, Mori and a similarly silent and stout young man sitting in the corner under the shade of a few trees and watching Hani eat his cake. Caitlyn smiled at her friend.

"No food for you, Arthur?"

The boy snorted, which Caitlyn interpreted easily. He didn't need any more calories in his opinion.

"I'm trying to drop a weight class before we go back for the new season," he replied evenly. Caitlyn snorted in return.

"Interesting friends you have," Kyoya said casually. Somewhere along the line he'd begun to trace patterns on her hand with the one that wasn't holding hers. Absentmindedly, of course. It was rather distracting, and she shifted in her seat.

"You're one to talk," Kevin replied with a grin. "Host Club? Does that actually work over there?"

"Yeah, they drool over the lot of them. It's awful," Caitlyn teased. "And they squeal whenever anyone has a moment, which is really awkward considering, you know, the fact that it's supposed to be a moment." She made a face, and Haruhi giggled.

"Sound like movie stars or something. Adored and revered, but no privacy."

"Exactly."

"So…" the boy said, eyeing Kyoya. "You gonna get mobbed for seeing him then? That's what happens in all those mangas."

Caitlyn simply grinned sadistically. "Let them try it."

Kyoya sighed. "Please, don't. Haruhi has yet to become a lawyer. Don't put me in a position of having to bail you out of jail for assault. My father… I would never hear the end of it."

Haruhi gave Kyoya a look. "So you'd make me do it instead of hiring someone better?" she asked flatly. Kyoya smiled his usual not-so-secretly evil smile.

"Oh, but Haruhi, who says _you_ won't be the best?"

The expressionless face the girl turned to the Shadow Lord spoke volumes with silence that words couldn't have.

"So, what's your deal?" Kevin asked. Haruhi turned to him confusedly. "You get kidnapped too?"

"Actually, I'm a host," Haruhi said, smiling slightly. Kevin blinked

"_Oh_," he said, and Caitlyn smacked him.

"Not like that, you idiot. No one knows she's a girl. She owed them money."

The boy smirked, obviously taking his friend's defense the wrong way, and Caitlyn hit him over the back of the head. He released her shoulders to cower behind a surprised Lizzie. Then the blonde girl laughed.

"Not back a day and you're whacking him already?"

"He's being a pervert," she replied. Lizzie grinned.

"Why is it that only you ever hear him, hmm?"

" 'Cause I'm not. She's making it up," the boy said, recovering his dignity. Caitlyn snorted, and the boy grinned and winked at her. His expression softened. "It's good to see you laugh again, Cait."

Her expression soured, but Kyoya and Kevin were the only ones who seemed to notice. Kevin closed his mouth, eyes widening as he realized that the Host Club was missing the vital information these friends of hers had and that she had no intention of sharing with them. Lizzie, however, seemed to not notice a thing.

"Yeah, ever since your parents… well, you know." She looked at her friend. "But it's good to see the guilt gone."

Caitlyn frowned. "It's not gone, Liz."

The girl smiled. "Well you don't flinch around cars anymore. And you were even fine when we passed the artist's displays just now."

"Your parents were artists?" Kyoya asked, confused. Lizzie laughed.

"She didn't tell you? No, just her dad. Her mom did the business-suit, lawyer thing. But he was the one who really mattered, right?"

"What, her mother didn't matter?" Haruhi said, brow creasing. Caitlyn knew exactly where this was coming from; the girl couldn't understand why someone wouldn't be upset that their mother had died. Or perhaps she hadn't caught that hint in the conversation. "That's rather offensive."

The girl blinked at this, and then her eyes widened as she realized she'd crossed a line. "Oh… you didn't…" A hand flew to her mouth. "OhmigodI'msosorryCait-"

"That's enough, Liz," she said curtly, cutting the girl off. The blond sat back down in the corner, hand still over her mouth, eyes wide. Caitlyn had the oddest sense of déjà vu watching the exchange, and wondered if this was how Kyoya felt all the time. How often had Tamaki opened his mouth too wide without realizing it? Or gone through a whole monologue without taking a breath, too excited to even consider stopping?

There was an awkward period of silence before Kyoya opened his mouth to speak.

"What are we missing, Caitlyn?" he asked. The Host Club leaned in subconsciously, watching the discourse with a certain amount of consternation. Caitlyn's friends from the city paused, confused at the sudden switch in languages.

"Leave it alone, Kyoya."

"But we're just-"

"Haruhi, you too?"

"Oh, come now, it's not like-"

"_Tamaki?_" the girl interrupted, voice shooting up an octave as she set her jaw.

"But Caitlyn, we just-" the twins cut in, but to no avail.

"Isn't there _anyone_ who isn't goin'a harass me about this?" she snarled in English, sliding back into slang. There were two changes that occurred in Caitlyn's speech patterns when the girl was angry or otherwise flustered; either she spoke in overtly-formal Japanese or in highly colloquialised English. Many of the hosts, of course, had no idea what she had just said, but the anger in her tone and expression was enough and the group paused. There was another period of silence in which Lizzie mouthed 'I'm sorry!' again. She rounded on the group. "I want you _all_ to listen up and listen _good_. I didn't tell _anyone_ in Japan what happened. And guess what? I don't _plan_ to. We moved lookin' for a fresh start, and we ain't goin'ta get one if I tell anyone about it, alright? So you guys stop askin' and _you all_ better keep your mouths shut, you got it?"

Another awkward silence.

"Uhm… I'm really sorry, Caitlyn."

"Liz, shut the fuck up."

"Shutting! Shutting!"

* * *

"Well… today was… eventful."

Kyoya shot Haruhi an amused expression as they sat together in the lobby. The Wi-Fi signal was better here, and Kyoya had opted to take his laptop downstairs. Caitlyn had run off to do something, she hadn't said what. Kyoya suspected she was visiting a certain someone's grave, but he wasn't about to say that. He'd simply offered to pay the taxi fare. She'd obviously declined.

That didn't stop him from paying the man fifty dollars to call and tell him where he'd dropped her off and find out what she was doing. Convincing the driver her rich boyfriend suspected her of cheating wasn't that hard, after all.

"So… what do you think?"

Kyoya smirked. Haruhi wasn't stupid. She might not want to believe ill of someone's deceased mother, but once the dust had settled it was pretty obvious what Caitlyn's situation had most likely been. The girl was simply asking for confirmation.

"I think Caitlyn doesn't want us to know anything more than we do about her life here."

"That never stopped you before," the girl pointed out flatly. Kyoya chuckled.

"No, it didn't," he allowed.

"So… what? Her mom was mean, abusive? They just didn't get along?"

"Caitlyn doesn't seem to get along with a lot of people."

"That's true," Haruhi said. She gave the Shadow-Lord a look. "But you don't believe that's it."

Kyoya smiled begrudgingly. "Of course not."

"…are you poking around?"

"Actually, I was on my way out," he said, making a decision. "Find Tamaki."

"Uhm… what?"

Kyoya smirked. "You heard me. Find your idiot boyfriend and meet me outside in five minutes. We're going on a bit of a trip."

The girl blinked and stood.

"Oh, and Haruhi?"

Haruhi paused as Kyoya called her name, not even looking up from his laptop.

"Hai, Kyoya-Senpai?"

"Make sure he brings photo I.D."

"_Nani_?" she demanded, incredulous.

"Just in case," Kyoya replied genially. "After all, his name is the only reason he's coming."

* * *

"What do you mean you can't release the information to a student? He came all the way from Japan with strict orders from his father to retrieve the documents _you_ were supposed to have processed already and you're telling me you can't give them to him?" Kyoya demanded coolly, eyes sparking dangerously from behind his glasses. Tamaki stood to the side and watched nervously, Haruhi looking around at the school office with a certain amount of interest. What she really would have liked to know was what the school was doing open during the summer, not to mention it was late, but…

"I'm… well, I could call the Principal sir, but I'm almost positive he will give you the same answer."

"Please do," the bespectacled boy said shortly, glaring at the small woman before him. She flinched and headed into the back room. Tamaki cleared his throat and Kyoya turned with a raised eyebrow.

"Isn't this going a little far?" he whispered. Kyoya rolled his eyes.

"Don't even being to attempt to lie to me by saying you're not at least half as curious as the rest of us are, Tamaki."

"Well, of course I am," the boy said indignantly. "Doesn't mean it's the right-"

"I'm terribly sorry about all this," the woman said nervously, coming back out. "But you see, some of the files were sent by mail and are already in transit. I can give you what I have, but I have to get them from another room. Would you mind waiting here for a moment?"

Kyoya nodded curtly and watched as the woman disappeared, then jumped as his phone went off. "Hello?"

"I just drop her off at a cemetery, señor. You want me to follow'er?"

Kyoya blinked, disoriented by the accent for a moment before clearing his throat. "Er... sure, why not? If you can tell me what the headstone says, that'd be perfect. Would you mind?"

"No problem. You give me a good tip, sí? And it's the end of my shift. I don't mind."

"Arig-Ah... I mean, thank you very much. Really."

"Ay, if my girl want to visit a grave on vacation, I want to know what she's doing too. I'll call you when I know."

Kyoya sighed as the woman returned from her search holding a small folder. This day was looking up, it seemed. He was getting answers, finally. After all this time.

"These are just copies. I think most of them have been sent to your father's offices electronically by now, but this is what we have readily accessible. If there's anything else?"

"No, that'll be all. Thank you very much," Kyoya said curtly, taking the files and handing them to Tamaki. The blonde looked down at them with a bemused expression, and Kyoya suppressed a sigh. If he blew this cover now, he might just have to kill him. Best friend or not.

**A/N: Well, I basically forgot about this story completely. **Zealous Frost** reminded me, thankfully. xD See, this is why I need reviews. I forget about my older stories without them! xD Anyway, the story should get moving from here. Lots of angst to come though, warning you, although I promise a sort of happy ending? Anyway, review please! .; And sorry for taking so long to update.**


	37. Just a Touch

"I wonder what Mori and Hani are doing right now. I know that Tamaki took Haruhi out for dinner and a Broadway play and all that nonsense, and the twins are out clubbing with their fake IDs, but-"

"_Nani_?" Kyoya demanded, and Caitlyn blinked, biting her lip before pointing over the railing.

"Look, the water Taxi!" she exclaimed transparently, and Kyoya sighed and chuckled resignedly. Frankly, he wasn't even sure he wanted to know.

They'd picked the last night in New York to have some time to themselves, each floating off to do their own thing. Caitlyn had taken Kyoya to Grimaldi's pizza for an early dinner, followed by ice cream and then a walk back over the bridge. He had walked more than he ever had in his life with Caitlyn, but he supposed that it was a blessing in disguise to see the city the way she did; personally. She spoke of it as though it was an old friend, not a place, and the humble grace of her interactions were certainly telling of… something. Or perhaps just endearing. He wasn't quite sure which.

She squeezed his hand gently, bringing him back to the moment, and he glanced down at her soft smile with a catch in his throat.

"Thank you. For this," she murmured, and he swallowed. She looked out at the water again, closing her eyes as the wind swept over her, blowing her hair into her face. "I… it's like falling in love all over again. I can come back, now, you know? I can breathe it all in and just… It's like I'm whole again, almost. Don't pour peroxide on my wounds, mind. They're still raw, but… I don't know. I belong here." She laughed, letting go of his hand and spinning, throwing her arms wide to the mostly empty bridge, eyes closed.

"I'll take you again, next summer," he promised, throat dry as he watched her. He caught her by the hand again, and she glanced up at him with a dry grin.

"You're assuming we'll still be together, then?" she asked, and he flushed.

"No, I just- Well… Even if we aren't, we should still be close enough. Haruhi and you are friends, as well as the twins, so…"

Caitlyn laughed. "Alright, _amoureux. _Relax. I was joking."

Kyoya smiled softly. "You're welcome, though. And I'd… I'd like to take you again."

Caitlyn smiled. "I know."

* * *

"Checkmate."

Kyoya frowned. "That can't possibly be correct."

The rest of the trip has passed rather uneventfully aside from the twins winning their bet. He shuddered to think of what they'd do with the skill she'd taught them in the following weeks. Perhaps better not to think on it at all.

Caitlyn laughed, distracting him. He looked up at her. "No. If your king moves here, the knight kills him. I've blocked you into the corner. The bishop is already set to kill him, so moving diagonally gets him killed. And my queen is here, so…"

Kyoya looked at the board and sighed. They'd had an early dinner that night, around five or so, and had headed back to the Ootori mansion. Caitlyn had talked him into watching some American movie called Fight Club, although how she'd found a copy with Japanese subtitles he wasn't sure. Despite being rather disturbing, he found he rather liked the movie, much to Caitlyn's delight. They'd then proceeded to spread a chessboard out on his bed and play four games of chess. This was the fifth, and so far it was Caitlyn 3 Kyoya 2.

"Rematch," he demanded solemnly.

"No way!" Caitlyn replied, laughing. "We've played way too many sets."

"Only five," he contradicted. She rolled her eyes and began to pack up the board. Kyoya twisted his lips wryly but began to pick up the pieces scattered around the bed. Together, they reached for the white king and their hands brushed. A shock ran up his spine, and Caitlyn pulled her hand back quickly.

"Sorry," she said instinctually. His eyes narrowed, and he pulled the box out of her hands. She looked up at him, eyes unreadable.

"We've been dating for a month now, is that right?" Caitlyn shrugged, eyes falling to the floor, and Kyoya reached over and took her hand into his. She flinched slightly out of instinct before relaxing. "Then what's wrong with this? I caught Tamaki and Haruhi, innocent idiots that they are, kissing in the alcove where the bathroom entrances were when we all went to lunch a few weeks past." Caitlyn stiffened, eyes still on the rug, and Kyoya sighed heavily. "I'm not pressuring you, because I'm not the type of person who would pressure a young woman to do anything. I was simply trying to say that you shouldn't be uncomfortable with touching me. And you definitely should not apologize for it."

Caitlyn looked up at him, her eyes a little watery. He blinked in surprise; had he made her cry? "No, it's not your fault. It's just… I had… there's a reason I don't like people touching me."

Kyoya looked at her, a feeling of dread creeping into his bones. Had something… happened? "Were you… did something happen?"

Caitlyn looked at his expression and smiled slightly. "I wasn't raped or anything like that." She laughed bitterly, and continued in a perfect imitation of Brad Pitt. " 'It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything.' "

Kyoya blinked at this. _Fight Club… abused? It's not exactly tactful to ask though…_ He sighed, then attempted to pull her into his lap. This failed a bit, instead ending with them lying down, her head on his chest. Kyoya hadn't exactly planned this, but he wasn't complaining. She stiffened again. "Caitlyn, I'm not going to hurt you."

The girl didn't respond, remaining tense. After a few moments, she slowly began to relax. "I know," she murmured.

They lay there like that for a few moments, an eternity of peace Kyoya hadn't known in a long time. He listened to the steady breathing of the girl next to him (or rather partially on top of him) and smiled a little sardonically. Hesitantly, he brushed the hair out of her face, only to realize her eyes had closed at some point. His eyes strayed to the clock; eleven thirty-nine. He sighed.

_I can think of a lot of things far worse than falling asleep with the girl I l-… _Kyoya paused.

_Like._ He chuckled quietly, careful to not wake her up. _Amoureux indeed._

* * *

Caitlyn pulled the pillow closer to her, smiling slightly. Recently her pillows smelled like fresh laundry and mint, probably from the various times Kyoya had sat on them. Kyoya-…

Her eyes snapped open.

The room was lit brightly by the brilliance of the sky, the majority of the room lit in the blue and yellow light. Kyoya's hand was stroking her hair absentmindedly, and the sound of his breathing sounded over her head somewhere. Her heart thudded wildly in her chest as she sat up. He looked at her, amused, her expression one of a deer in headlights.

"Shit!" she exclaimed. "Did Aunt Alexandra call?"

"Well, I put your phone on vibrate when-"

"Shit!" she exclaimed again. She dove the nightstand, feeling around and blinking in the light before coming up with her phone. "Shit, shit, shit… three missed calls, Kyoya!" She closed the phone without looking at them and tossed it into her bag.

"Cait-"

The girl cut him off with a groan, slumping back onto the bed. "I am grounded for eternity."

"Caitlyn," Kyoya tried again, his voice still highly amused. "I don't think your aunt is too worried. All of those calls are from Tamaki and the twins."

"You don't know that."

"Actually, I do. I looked at your phone as it rang."

The girl turned her head and looked up at him. "You did?"

He raised his eyebrow at her. "Do you think I'm lying? You can check if you'd like."

She opened her mouth to respond with a biting comment, then paused and thought against it. "No." She rolled onto her stomach, head on her palms, elbows disappearing into the sheets. "You're not wearing your glasses."

He smirked. "Good morning to you too," he replied dryly. He looked at the clock. "Or afternoon, rather."

She ignored this. "Do you even need your glasses? Your prescription is pretty thin." She looked at him speculatively. "You look really different without your glasses, actually."

Kyoya gave her a wry look. "You saw me without my glasses during that ludicrous race you subjected me to."

"Well yeah, but I didn't really care at that point," she retorted. She grinned at him. "Anyway, we wouldn't be dating if I hadn't done that, would we?"

"Perhaps," he allowed. She made a face at him.

"You better not have tried anything last night," she warned teasingly, changing the subject. A smirk spread across the Shadow-Lord's face.

"And if I did?"

She grabbed a pillow and whacked him with it, and he smirked and pinned her to the bed. Her smile faded as her body stiffened slightly, and Kyoya looked down at her and sighed.

"My apologies," he said resignedly. He leaned down and pressed his lips to her forehead before getting up. Caitlyn lay there, stunned at the sudden expression of intimacy. "I'd like to take a shower, if you don't mind…?"

"Oh, yeah, sure," she said. He walked off, presumably towards the bathroom, leaving her there. She sighed, annoyed at herself. "Idiot that you are…"

Then she grinned. "I bet we're the only couple in history to sleep together without having kissed on the lips yet, though. I wonder if there's an award for that somewhere…"

**A/N: So, since I haven't updated in ages and I had this sitting around, I figured why not? Fluff, per usual recently. My apologies? XD Anyhow, reviews are much welcome. And suggestions. Because I always appreciate those. :D**


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